Denzel Washington says he hopes film fans "have a good experience" when they watch his new movie Flight.

The veteran actor attended the Los Angeles premiere on Tuesday night, along with co-stars Melissa Leo and Kelly Reilly, as well as director Robert Zemeckis.

In the thriller, Denzel plays a pilot who saves nearly everyone on board his plane with a crash landing after a mid-air catastrophe, but his heroic actions are called into question after rescue workers discover he had been drinking the night before the botched flight.

Denzel defended his character though, saying: "He's a good guy. He's got problems like we all do. I don't want to say he's pathetic or sad, but he's struggling with his addictions."

Flight is due for release in the UK on February 1, 2013.