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Sir Anthony Hopkins has credited his third wife with giving him the courage to make his debut album.
The Oscar-winning actor has been writing classical music for over 50 years, but until recently was too "cynical" to make anything of it, and didn't think he "was any good".
Sir Anthony, 74, said something changed when he married Colombian actress and producer Stella in 2003.
"She told me not to be so dismissive," he said.
"She's very supportive. Well, it's more than support, actually, it's an urge. Stella says 'You wanted to be an actor, so you tried hard and became one. Do the same with your music'."
The Silence Of The Lambs star's first album, Composer, is a collection of his classical works performed by the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
Sir Anthony said: "I don't like approaching people or confrontation.
"I'd rather go and hide in the garden shed, but Stella said I had nothing to lose and not to be scared of rejection, so that was that."
The Welsh-born actor, who is shooting Solace, and is set to star in an Alfred Hitchcock biopic and a sequel to Thor, said he hasn't set himself any goals for his music. "I don't have that kind of brain...You can't force these things," he said. "It's like hammering a nail - hit it too hard and you'll splinter the wood and ruin everything."
:: Composer by Anthony Hopkins is released today (January 16).
