The actor was on the island state in 2018 when an alert was broadcast warning of an imminent ballistic missile.

Carrey revealed his assistant told him the news, leading him to say his goodbyes to loved ones before staring off into the Pacific Ocean for what he thought were his last moments of life.

He appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to promote his book "Memoirs And Misinformation".

The 58-year-old said: "The (book) cover is actually my face after being told I have 10 minutes to live. It was completely real to us."

Carrey, star of films including Dumb And Dumber, Liar Liar and The Truman Show, said he initially tried to get off the island before realising it would not be possible.

He tried to meet up with loved ones and Carrey said he thought at the time "I don't want to die in my car".

After saying his goodbyes, Carrey looked out at the ocean for what he thought were his last minutes alive.

"At that point, I started going, 'OK what can I do with this last moment of time?'. I just decided to go through a list of gratitudes and, honest to God, I just could not stop thinking of wonderful things that have happened to me and blessings I've had.

"It was lovely. And I got to a point of grace at about two minutes to spare when I found out it wasn't actually happening. All I was planning to do was closing my eyes and be thankful because it's been a good ride."

Asked by Fallon how he reacted to discovering the alert had been sent in error, Carrey joked: "I got pissed off and heads rolled".

The alert was transmitted on January 13, 2018 and advised residents to take shelter from an incoming ballistic missile. The message added: "This is not a drill".

State officials blamed a miscommunication during an exercise at the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

An employee was later fired.

Australian Associated Press