Richard Gere has claimed his wife mistook him for George Clooney when they first met.

Richard Gere said his wife Alejandra Silva thought he was George Clooney when they first met

Richard Gere said his wife Alejandra Silva thought he was George Clooney when they first met

The 'Pretty Woman' actor first crossed paths with Alejandra Silva at a hotel in Positano, Italy, in 2014 and he's joked the Spanish publicist had "no idea" who he was and even though she insisted she had seen some of his work, he joked she had confused him with his fellow silver-haired leading man.

Richard, 75, told Spain's Elle magazine: "She had no idea who I was when we met - none.

"She didn't see movies, which was great - I was very happy about that."

But his 41-year-old wife insisted: "Richard, I knew who you were, I didn't see many of your movies."

Richard quipped: "She thought I was George Clooney but other than that, she knew exactly who I was."

Alejandra - who has 11-year-old Albert from a previous relationship and Alexander, five, and James, four, with her spouse - admitted Richard's 2014 movie 'Time Out of Mind' led to her falling for him.

She said: "He's so sexy there."

While the 'Officer and a Gentleman' actor - who was previously married to Cindy Crawford and Carey Lowell, the mother of his 24-year-old son Homer - admitted he has been learning Spanish, he confessed that none of the phrases he knows are particularly suitable for repeating in public.

He said: "I had a Brazilian girlfriend for a long time, but all I knew were dirty things. They were sexy. So, that's the only way I can speak in Portuguese but the same in Spanish, so I'm sorry I can't do it now."

The 'Arbitrage' actor previously admitted he "instantly" fell in love with Alejandra.

Asked if he fell in love at first sight, he told the Sunday Times magazine: "Instant from my side. I instantly became happy just looking at her. It was one of those powerful things.

And pressed on if he's felt the same connection in the past, he said: "Yes, I've been married three times, but it didn't happen with the kind of power of this one. But I do remember the first time I met each of my wives."

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