Keira Knightley's boyfriend Rupert Friend has defended her decision to appear in an advert which highlights the problem of domestic abuse against women.

The two-minute film, which shows Knightley being struck repeatedly by a male friend, was banned from television after a watchdog deemed it to violent.

Speaking at the premiere of his new film Cheri , Friend said: "I think that banning an advert because it is shocking is quite the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of.

"What is shocking is that women are getting hit. The point is to shock people."

The advert was originally released on YouTube and cinemas last month as part of a campaign by the charity Women's Aid.

But Ofcom watchdog Clearcast later ruled that the advert must be edited with the violent scenes removed before it could be shown again.

Friend said he had knowledge of the issue highlighted by the campaign because his mother was a domestic abuse lawyer.

“So I've been involved on the very outskirts of the campaign to stop domestic abuse for some time," he told The Telegraph.

Friend has dated Knightley since the pair met on the set of the 2005 movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. 

Keira Knightley