Mischa Barton hospitalised after ‘breakdown’

The British actress Mischa Barton has missed the New York premiere of her latest film, Homecoming after being hospitalised following a reported breakdown.

Barton, who made her name on the TV show The OC was taken to hospital from her home in Los Angeles by police on Wednesday. People magazine reported that the 23-year-old actress, who was sentenced to 36 months' probation for drink driving and marijuana possession in 2008, was later transferred to the Cedars-Sinai hospital and placed in a psychiatric unit. 

A Los Angeles police department spokeswoman confirmed that police had answered Barton's emergency call: "Shortly after 3pm, a patrol car did respond to her home to assist her with medical issues, no one was arrested and no one else was involved."

Barton's publicist, Craig Schneider, said in a statement that the police had been involved due to his client's celebrity status.

In Homecoming, Barton plays a woman obsessed with her former high-school sweetheart. The film's producer Austin Stark said that the cast and crew wished her all the best. "It's obvious we'd like her to support the movie and be here, but we hope she gets better," he told People.

"When she was on set, she acted like a professional. I honestly had no complaints. She struck me as a nice young girl, she never said anything mean to anyone, and she wasn't late on set or anything like that." ·