Aaron Eckhart joined Twitter to ''get chicks''.

The 'Olympus Has Fallen' actor recently joined the social networking site at the behest of his agent, but admits the only reason he signed up for a profile is to improve his dating life.

He explained to The Guardian newspaper: ''My agent made me [join Twitter] because there's this insane notion that it all matters for business. They'll tell me so-and-so has this many followers. I go, 'Yeah, but did it get him a job? Are they a better actor?' And they're like, 'No.'

''Why did I give in? I'm an old man. What do I need Twitter for? Mostly it's just to get chicks.''

Quizzed on whether he was desperate enough to field dates on the social network, he responded: ''Yes I am. I'm very shy. I know you don't believe it.''

The 45-year-old star stays away from dating websites, however, for fear of being recognised and having his sexual exploits made public.

He added: ''Then they tweet it and everything. Like, I've had some weird experiences ... but let's not go into that.''

The 'Dark Knight' star also revealed his belief in spiritual healing and is convinced he can cure himself of ailments.

He said: ''I believe it's a science and it's absolutely true. I believe I can heal myself. The other day I was chopping wood at my house at 5.30am and this bit whacked me in the eye, knocked me down, spilt my coffee. You just release everything and you're healing - boom, boom, boom, all of a sudden, pain's gone, eye's healed.''