Willem Dafoe admitted his relationship with Giada Colagrande was dismissed as a "midlife crisis".

The 69-year-old actor met the then-27-year-old director in 2003 and they quickly fell in love, with the 'Nosferatu' actor giving up his life in the US to move to Rome, Italy, with the filmmaker, who he married in 2005.

He reflected to the Telegraph magazine: "Some people would call it a midlife crisis and all that, but I wasn't looking for anything. We were friends and then we were more than friends.

"It was a little scary. My whole life changed. I became an immigrant. Suddenly, I'm living in Italy. I don't speak the language. I have a day-to-day job that I've given up. I'm further from my son."

Before meeting Giada, now 49, Willem was in a relationship with Elizabeth LeCompte - the father of his 42-year-old son Jack - for more than 25 years and he lost friends when they separated.

He said: "I've got sets of friends that I don't have any more because of the split."

While the 'Lighthouse' actor spends more time in Italy and can speak the language fluently, he doesn't necessarily feel settled in Rome.

He said: "My wife is my home. It's the life of a troubadour, and there's a beauty in that. I'd rather float. And not because I'm a coward, but [because] I'm interested in seeing different points of view. I think that's the nature of being an actor."

But the 'Heaven's Gate' actor thinks he has found the right partner in Giada.

Asked about his marriage, he told the tale of a student of Socrates who told the philosopher: "I'm thinking about getting married. What do you think?"

Socrates replied: "Well, if you want to get married, that's fine. If you find a good wife, you'll have a good life. If you find a bad one, you'll become a philosopher."

Asked if he has found a good wife, Willem smiled: "I think so, but I'm also prone to philosophy."

Meanwhile, the 'Spider-Man' actor suggested Elizabeth had made a public bid for "revenge".

He said: "I always laugh once they do profile pieces, because sometimes they go and interview your ex-partners and one in particular says, 'Oh, he always wanted to be the centre of attention.' I'm like, 'No, what?' Oh my God. That's revenge, I suppose."