Actor Russell Crowe, who pleaded guilty to assault last year in the US, claims the incident would have been played down in his home country of Australia.
Russell Crowe admits that he has a temper
Crowe, 42 says he regrets throwing a telephone at a hotel clerk last June.
In an interview with CBS, the New Zealand-born Oscar winner claims the US legal system is "open to be misused".
"Where I come from, a confrontation as basic and simple as that would have been satisfied with a handshake and an apology," he said.
Crowe was arrested after flying into a rage when he struggled to call his wife in Australia from his room at the Mercer Hotel in Manhattan's Soho district.
"Oh, hell yeah, absolutely I have a temper," he said.
"You know what happens when you don't have one? One day you're walking down the street and you just pop," he added.
Back in June the actor publicly apologised. He told the Late Show with David Letterman it was one of the "most shameful" situations of his life.
The actor also reached a settlement with the hotel worker who sued him over the incident.