Sharon Stone had an "argument" with Michael Douglas before they starred in Basic Instinct together.

The pair featured as the leads in the 1992 erotic thriller but she recalled that they had previously got into a row at the Cannes Film Festival which meant they didn't do a screen test together.

In an interview with Business Insider, Sharon said: "(He) did not want to put his bare a** out on the screen with an unknown - and I understood that.

"He wouldn't even test with me, but that was also for a different reason: We had an argument prior to that."

The 67-year-old actress continued: "A bunch of us were all sitting, and he was talking about someone and their kids. I really, really knew this person he was talking about.

"So I said something and he responded to me, saying, 'What the f*** do you know?' It was in regard to a father-child relationship.

"Clearly, it triggered him. So he screams this at me across a whole group of people. And I'm not the person who goes, 'Oh, excuse me, superstar.' I pushed back my chair and said to him, 'Let's step outside.' That's how we first met.

"I explained to him what the f*** I knew about this family he was speaking about, and that I was best friends with the children and the parent. And then we parted, I wouldn't say as best friends, but amicably.

"So, fast forward to casting Basic Instinct, I don't think he wanted me to be his co-star."

However, Michael's representative Allen Burry claims that the Wall Street star, 80, is "very surprised" by Sharon's claims as "he doesn't remember any argument in that timeframe" between the pair.

Burry told People: "He actually only remembers seeing and meeting Sharon for the first time when he saw (director) Paul Verhoeven's screen test of her for Basic Instinct and (Michael) said, 'Absolutely, she's the one.'"

He added that Douglas "definitely spent time" with Stone at Cannes but that was when they were promoting Basic Instinct.

Burry said: "And by the time they'd done the movie, they were friends."

Sharon added that the previously fraught dynamic between the duo "worked great" once they got on set as she was "not rattled" by his fiery temper.

The Casino star said: "That was interesting for the character because Michael has a temper, and I didn't care. That worked well in our dynamic."

Sharon stressed that the argument is in the past and that the pair are now good pals.

She said: "Eventually, we became the greatest of friends, to this day.

"I admire him tremendously."