PARIS (AFP) - The French actor Alain Delon has undergone surgery after being admitted to hospital in Paris with severe back pain, French media reported Wednesday.

The 78-year-old star, who came to embody late 1960s French cinematic cool in films such as The Samurai, had recently appeared on stage in the French capital with his daughter Anouchka in the play An Ordinary Day.

Neither the actor's secretary nor his family were available for comment.