Jennifer Lawrence has faced a backlash after telling a story about itching her “butt” on Hawaiian sacred rocks.

The actress recounted the tale on The Graham Norton Show, as she sat alongside film star Chris Pratt and chef Jamie Oliver.

“We were filming in Hawaii, and there were sacred…rocks — I dunno, they were ancestors, who knows. They were sacred,” she said.

“And you’re not supposed to sit on them, because you’re not supposed to expose your genitalia to them.

Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt (Matt Crossick/PA)
Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt (Matt Crossick/PA)

“I however, was in a wet suit for this whole shoot, so, oh my god they were so good for butt itching!

“One rock that I was butt-scratching on ended up coming loose. A giant boulder and it rolled down this mountain and almost killed our sound guy.

“It was a huge dramatic deal. All the Hawaiians were like ‘oh my god it’s the curse’… I was like ‘I am your curse’. I wedged it loose with my ass.”

Some viewers criticised the star on Twitter, saying that they were disgusted with her comments.

Others said they’d heard the Oscar winner tell the story – about what happened while filming The Hunger Games – before but it hadn’t caused controversy at the time.

Jennifer and Chris Pratt were promoting their new film Passengers on the BBC One show.