British actor SIMON PEGG has hit out the media over the coverage of KIRSTEN DUNST’s recent trip to rehab.

The Spider-Man star entered a facility in Utah last year (07) and was subject to speculation about her treatment - with internet gossips suggesting she was battling alcohol addiction.

Dunst subsequently went public with her problems and admitted she was battling depression.

And Pegg - who co-stars with Dunst in new movie How To Lose Friends and Alienate People - insists the actress should never have been forced to talk about her emotional problems.

He says, “The speculation was horrendous, with her family and friends having to defend her.

“Eventually she was forced to publicly explain that she had gone to a clinic because of depression - she had to tell the whole world about something very personal.”