Pierce Brosnan admits that horror movies "scare the bejesus" out of him.

The 58-year-old actor stars in upcoming US miniseries Bag of Bones which was adapted from the work of author Stephen King.

Although Pierce is a horror movie veteran, one film in particular really introduced him to the true terror that this genre evokes in audiences.

"The 1976 horror movie Carrie was the first one to really scare the bejesus out of me," Pierce told People magazine.

"I remember going home to my little apartment in North London mildly freaked. Part of the issue was starring actress Sissy Spacek. She was beautiful and I fell in love with her."

To a degree, Pierce was terrified while shooting this miniseries too.

"Part of me kept thinking the same thing: just leave the f**king house!" he quipped. "However, the quest for my character was to find out what was going on. It was balls to the wall, for character and for actor."

The dashing star may have been facing supernatural forces in this film, but he did not flash his torso amid the action.

"Within the context of this piece, I thought it was unnecessary to go around without my shirt," Pierce explained.

"I thought, there's Stephen King, and then there's running around without my shirt. They are two separate worlds."

Pierce credits the choice to keep his upper body clothed to his wholesome sense of self.

"I think I've got that healthy sense of my own vanity, and that has partly to do with one's health."

Bag of Bones will premiere in the US on December 11.