Kim Basinger has hired a bodyguard to protect her daughter following Alec Baldwin�s infamous phone rant.

Ireland, 11, will now be protected by security with a judge banning Baldwin from seeing his daughter until a new court hearing on 4 May, according to the Daily Mirror.

The actor apologised over the weekend for calling Ireland a "rude, thoughtless little pig" in an irrate phone message which was leaked to a website.

However, now the 49-year-old is to launch legal action over the tape being made public, with Baldwin suggesting his bitter custody battle with ex-wife Basinger was responsible.