Norton breaks his back playing British doctor

Movie star Edward Norton was left in agony on the set of his new movie The Painted Veil after he was thrown from a horse onto a pile of rocks.

The Fight Club actor was shooting the film with Naomi Watts in China when his steed got the better of him and he was left with a broken back.

Norton admits he had no idea just how badly he'd injured his back at first: "I did not feel good and I remember I thought at the time, 'This could be really bad, this could be one of those stories; I'm gonna end up one of those people.' But I didn't actually know it was broken.

"I finished the film out and then went to Hong Kong. I was in a lot of pain."

The actor admits the injury actually helped him perfect his character in the film.

He explains: "I was playing this kind of uptight British doctor and it (the injury) actually kind of worked."

Norton jokes: "That's how far I'm willing to go. I mean De Niro just gained weight (to play Jake La Motta in Raging Bull)."