Actor Russell Crowe may be called to give evidence at a trial of three men accused of a plot to blackmail him.

The case centres on a video tape which allegedly shows Crowe and others fighting in a street outside a Sydney nightclub.

Three men are due to stand trial accused of trying to blackmail the Oscar winning star out of AUS $200,000 (�74,017) to stop the tape being released to the media.

The video, said to come from the club's surveillance camera, will be key evidence in the case.

Philip Cropper and Malcolm Mercer are accused of threatening to have the video shown on national television unless Crowe handed over the money.

Two week trial

Mr Cropper and Mr Mercer, along with Mark Potts, are also charged with perverting the course of justice by not handing the tape over to the police.

The fight is alleged to have taken place at the Coffs Harbor club in November 1999 in Sydney.

Prosecutors have not yet said how the men may have got hold of the video.

The trial is expected to get underway on Monday and last for two weeks.

Crowe owns a ranch about 280 miles north of Sydney.

Missed out

Blackmail carries a maximum 10-year sentence in New South Wales and perverting the course of justice a maximum of 14 years.

Crowe picked up his best actor Oscar in 2001 for his role in the Roman epic Gladiator.

The 36-year-old missed out in the same category in 2002 to Denzil Washington performance in Training Day.

The movie A Beautiful Mind, in which he starred, won best film and best director for Ron Howard.