Noah Wyle was a "really dishonest kid" but it's made him "pathologically honest" as an adult

He told the New York Times: "I was a really dishonest kid. I lied a lot for attention. I lied for status. I lied for favour. I lied for advantage."

Wyle, 54, went on to reveal he told a huge lie during his time at summer camp when one of the other kids told him he looked like an actor on What's Happening!! and he claimed it really was him even though it was not true.

However, Wyle's credits his childhood lies with making him a more honest adult as "a sort of penance" for his past misdeeds.

When asked if he is "still a liar", he told the publication: "I really try not to be. I don't really have any reason to anymore. In fact, if anything, I'm pathologically honest. I'm like an open book now, as a mea culpa. As a sort of penance."

He went on to reveal his honesty comes into his work as he's determined to make his character in The Pitt - Dr. Michael 'Robby' Robinavitch - as authentic as possible.

Wyle said: "I play this one really close to the bone. Because there's no artifice on this show. There's no filter on that lens. There's no pretty lighting.

"It is a naked representation of what is, supposedly, reality. So the more reality I bring to it, the more authentic it comes across."

During the interview, Wyle also spoke about his experiences of fame after becoming a household name back in the 1990s playing Dr. John Carter on E.R.

He said of his profile: "At best, I can acknowledge it and appreciate it. And at worst, it makes me want to do something self-destructive in the face of it, and not have that pressure on me."

During his time on E.R., Noah forged a close bond with his co-star George Clooney and he recently explained how the pair share an "intimate" bond with one another after more than 30 years of friendship.

Speaking to People at the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards, Wyle said: "It's catching up when we can, but always from the point where we last left each other.

"Those bonds that were forged during that show are so lovely and intimate that I feel like we don't have to be totally present in each other's lives to be able to have a context for each other's lives.

"But he's been a real touchstone figure in my life and one who seems to pop up with great regularity at the right moments."