London, Jan 15 (IANS): Hollywood director David O Russell has apologised for comparing Jennifer Lawrence's filming schedule on “The Hunger Games” to slavery.

Known for directing “The Silver Linings Playbook” and “American Hustle”, Russell stated that he believed the Oscar-winning actress was worked too hard on the adventure movies, reports digitalspy.co.uk.

Last week, Russell was quoted as saying: "I personally think they should give her a bit of breathing room over there because they're printing money.

"But she's a very alive person. I'll tell you what it is about that girl - talk about '12 Years Of Slavery', that's what the franchise is. I'm going to get in so much trouble for saying that."

Russell has now issued a statement in which he apologised for the above remarks about the 23-year-old.

"Clearly, I used a stupid analogy in a poor attempt at humour," he said. "I realised it the minute I said it and I'm truly sorry."

“American Hustle” recently scooped the most awards at the Golden Globes, including Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) and Best Supporting Actress for Lawrence's role.