Julia Roberts and Benjamin Bratt at the Oscars

They had reportedly been involved in a "steamy" dance at a party to mark the end of filming.

But Clooney said he did not come between Roberts and Bratt.

"I didn't have time. I was too busy breaking up Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's marriage," he joked.

Clooney is currently in Italy, where he is on holiday with Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston after splitting from British model Lisa Snowdon.

'Untrue'

Roberts' spokeswoman also insisted gossip about Clooney and Roberts' "deepening relationship" was without foundation.

"The George Clooney rumour is untrue and there are no third parties involved with either of them," she told USA Today.

Roberts - Hollywood's highest paid actress - split from Bratt last month, it was revealed recently. They had been together for four years.

Roberts, 33, won an Oscar for her role in Erin Brockovich at this year's ceremony and has also starred in Pretty Woman, Notting Hill and Runaway Bride.

First marriage

American actor Bratt, 37, who accompanied Roberts to the Academy Awards ceremony in March, has appeared in Miss Congeniality and The Next Best Thing.

The split is the latest in a long line for Roberts, who has been married once - for a year - to country singer Lyle Lovett in 1993.

Before that, she lived with Irish actor Liam Neeson. She was briefly engaged to Dylan McDermott, her co-star in Steel Magnolias.

The she was also involved with Flatliners co-star Kiefer Sutherland.

That relationship ended two days before they were due to marry in 1991.