Tom Hardy is "falling to bits"

He told the new issue of Esquire magazine: "I've had two knee surgeries now, my disc's herniated in my back, I've got sciatica as well.

"And I have that... is it plantar fasciitis? Where did that come from? And why? Why?! And I pulled my tendon in my hip as well. It's like, it's all falling to bits now, and it's not going to get better."

But the 'MobLand' star admitted he's considered homeopathic "tinctures" and would also look into "stem cell" treatments.

Asked if he'd try the latter, he said: "Probably, yeah. I think if it comes down to the wire and it seems the sensible thing to do and I take advice."

Tom's ambition has changed as he's got older and no longer feels he has anything to prove.

He said: "There's a sort of, I guess, maturing. I've done a little bit in every single genre that I've ever wanted to do, and I've played on some big fields, you know? I've done some stinkers, I've done some cool things, I've played with some really amazing luminaries and people, I've had some really cool opportunities. I'm not retiring myself but I'm just saying, 'What do you want to do with that?'

"I've been running at something that I had to run at, to get an understanding that it's not going anywhere.

"There's only more, more, more. Of what? Stomach ulcers? Blood pressure? Your knees are going, your hair's falling out, your teeth are wonky, you're almost 50... Maybe it's a self-worth thing, maybe it's not finishing school, maybe it's not being good enough.

"But all this 'I'll show, I'll show'... Show who? No one cares! I know I can do it. Well then, chill out."

And as he moves closer to a new decade, Tom noted he is now "at the bottom of the old-man ladder when it comes to characters".

He added: "So I'm a newcomer for ['King Lear']. I'm the baby, I've got to grow into that, but that's kind of where we're at now.

"Because you either stay on this and it's confectionery, and it will be rewarded as such, and it's lovely. But it doesn't sustain the part of me that wants to grow."