The unnamed man was discovered in the backyard pool of a Los Angeles home owned by the actress at 5:30am local time on Sunday.

Los Angeles police say Moore was not home at the time of the tragedy, and the man was not a relative.

When officers arrived at the home on the 9000 block of Oak Pass Road in the west of the city, there was a small crowd around the body.

Police say the dead man was associated with someone who had access to the pool.

Celebrity news website TMZ quotes a neighbour as saying that Moore's children have been throwing regular pool parties at the house.