Russell Crowe is devastated after splitting from his wife Danielle Spencer.

The Oscar-winning star and his musician wife - who have been married for nine years and have two sons Charles, eight, and Tennyson, six, together - are reported to have amicably separated, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The couple has so far refused to comment but friends close to the couple are said to be shocked and the actor is said to be devastated. Sources are blaming the Les Miserables star's busy schedule for their break-up as back-to-back filming has forced him to spend most of his time overseas while his family remained at their home in Sydney.

The 48-year-old Gladiator star is currently filming his fifth movie this year, the biblical epic Noah in New York, and recently completed filming on the Superman reboot Man of Steel. He will next be seen on the big screen in The Man With The Iron Fists starring alongside Lucy Liu, which hits theaters in December, followed later that month by Les Miserables.