Steven Seagal has labelled NFL knee protests outrageous, a joke and disgusting in an extraordinary interview.

The Hollywood actor hit out at football players who used the televised US national anthem as a political platform, branding it an outrage.

Athletes have been kneeling in solidarity before games in a trend started by Colin Kaepernick, who said: 'I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people, and people of color.'

It prompted the US President Donald Trump this week to condemn those defying the anthem and Seagal, 65, defended his country's leader, accusing Washington 'Obama-ites' of trying to overthrow him.

Steven Seagal has labelled NFL knee protests outrageous, a joke and disgusting in an extraordinary interview

Steven Seagal and Donald Trump pictured in New York together back in 1995. The actor has defended his President amid the NFL kneeling protest row

The Dallas Cowboys, led by owner Jerry Jones, center, take a knee prior to the national anthem prior to an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals on Monday

After a wave of players took a knee in a movement gathering momentum in the US, former reserve deputy with sheriff's offices in Louisiana and Arizona Seagal said: 'I guess really what I'd like to say is this, I believe in free speech, I believe that everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but I don't agree that they should hold the United States of America or the world hostage by taking a venue where people are tuning in to watch a football game and imposing their political views.

'I think it's outrageous, I think it's a joke, it's disgusting. I respect the American flag.

'I myself have risked my life countless times for the American flag and I don't understand or agree with this kind of behavior. I think it's an outrage.'

The kneeling protest, which first came to light 13 months ago before picking up pace and spreading into other sports such as baseball, has irked Trump.

Oakland Athletics' Mark Canha places his hand on the shoulder of Bruce Maxwell as Maxwell takes a knee during the national anthem prior to a baseball game against the Texas Rangers in Oakland, California, on Sunday

On Friday, he added fuel to the already raging fire when he said: 'Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, "Get that son of a b**** off the field right now, out, he's fired. He's fired".

'You know, some owner is going to do that. He's going to say, "That guy that disrespects our flag, he's fired".

'And that owner, they don't know it [but] they'll be the most popular person in this country.'

Yesterday he praised the 'great anger' shown by some football fans who booed at players kneeling during the anthem.

But asked his opinion on President Donald Trump, Seagal said: 'I think that we have a really unfortunate situation in the sense that even though he was democratically elected, there are so many people out there that don't think that's the case.

'We have a tonne of enemies within.

'We have these democrats that have this whole other agenda to kind of, when I say democrats it's not just the democrats, but there are this whole group of left of Obama-ites and people that feel they should overthrow Trump, and any decisions he makes, anything he tries to do, he gets blocked often from the enemies within, so it's very difficult for him to do anything.'

Stephen Seagal appeared live on British TV from Moscow, where he is now a fully-fledged citizen

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) shakes hands with US action hero actor Steven Seagal after presenting a Russian passport to him during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow on November 25, 2016

Hollywood actor Steven Seagal spoke to today's Good Morning Britain live from Moscow, discussing everything from his Russian citizenship to Trump and the American kneeling protest row.

Of why he was granted Russian citizenship in 2016, Seagal said: 'I have lots of relatives in Russia and you know I love Russia, I love the country, I love the people and, you know, I think that one thing that's sort of not widely known, there are millions and millions of people in America who have dual and multiple citizenship so this is not an uncommon thing.

'The thing that makes it controversial is all of the propaganda flying, particularly from America about Russia, therefore it becomes kind of a controversial situation.'

Speaking of his 'many' direct dealings with Vladimir Putin, he said of the Russian leader: 'As I've said many times I think he's one of the great world leaders, he's brilliant, he's articulate, he's a great tactician.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (left) and American action movie actor Steven Seagal

'Him and I started out becoming friends over the martial arts.

'The martial arts has to do with a lot of things.

'It's a philosophy, it gets into the history of tactics and the history of the world and the world in conflict and the world in peace and so him and I basically, we don't have a political relationship, we really talk about the martial arts and the philosophy and people and dilemmas in life, that kind of thing.'

The actor was also quizzed on claims Russia fixed Trump's election.

'Let's be really honest - every country is involved in espionage, every single country,' Seagal said.

'The American spy, the British spy, the Russian spy, we all spy on each other. Let's be honest.

'However, for anyone to think that Vladimir Putin had anything to do with fixing the elections, or even that the Russians have that kind of technology, is stupid.

'We have a situation here where really all of this is happening, in my opinion, from astronomical propaganda.

'This kind of propaganda is really a diversion, creating a diversion so people from the United States of America won't really see what's happening.

'And I think most of the people in the United States of America and most of the people in Russia want to like each other.

'And we need each other. Russia and America should be great allies and that's the way it should be.'