Martin Compston was "very lucky" to get a flight home to Las Vegas, and made it back by the "skin of [his] teeth".
The 'Line of Duty' star was thought to be shooting the new series of the BBC thriller when producers allowed him to leave early to go home to his wife Tianna Flynn, before they postponed filming due to the coronavirus pandemic.
He said: "I was very lucky. I was on a production that I've been on for a long time and our producers are friends and understand, and they said to me, 'You've got to put family first.'
"At that point it was a very strange atmosphere because we knew we were going to stop at some point, but we had to follow government guidelines and at the time I left we hadn't stopped, so I just made it back by the skin of my teeth.
"It was a bit of a hairy journey over. The BA cabin crew were fantastic.
"Rules and destinations seemed to be changing by the minute, but they eventually got us home."
The 35-year-old star - who is from Greenock, Scotland - admitted it felt "important" to return to Vegas, where he now lives, to be with his significant other.
Speaking on 'Good Morning Britain' via video link from Vegas, he added: "My wife is from here.
"Scotland is always going to be home but I've spent 14 of the last 16 months on the road and when you get to a certain age you realise how important it is to have a support network around you.
"I've seen friends living in London and LA who have not got baby sitters living around them, and it can be really tough.
"So I just thought it was important my wife had her family around her, and the weather is not bad either."
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