Sharon Stone didn't host the World Music Awards because she wasn't paid.

The 'Fading Gigolo' actress pulled out of hosting last week's ceremony in Monte Carlo just a few hours before she was due to take to the stage as her pay cheque for the event failed to arrive.

A source told the New York Post newspaper's Page Six column: ''[Sharon arrived for the show] but when she didn't get paid, she got on her tender back to a yacht she was staying on.''

A spokesperson for the 56-year-old actress confirmed the report to be ''true and correct''.

Meanwhile, World Music Awards organisers claim Sharon rejected their preferred form of payment.

Producer Melissa Corken said: ''She was getting paid, but she didn't accept the form of payment we wanted to give her.

''One of our private board members was going to pay her -- Sharon didn't want a personal cheque.''

Melissa went on to claim a wire transfer of funds didn't go through because ''Mercury is in retrograde.''

She added: ''Do you know astrology? Everything gets lost, everything is late.''

'Baywatch' star Pamela Anderson stepped in at the last minute to front the glitzy ceremony.

Speaking on the red carpet before the event, she said: ''Sharon Stone has pulled out last minute and I've just been asked to stand in, its crazy. They've just asked me to read through the script right now, just as I arrived.''