Kevin Costner Says He Used Morphine While Filming 'Hidden Figures'

Kevin Costner blasted off on the set of "Hidden Figures" ... but instead of a rocket taking him to space he says need morphine to relieve pain.

The superstar actor sat down for an interview with People released Saturday ... and, he talked about the hit 2016 film about several Black women and their contribution to the space race at around the 17-minute mark.

KC -- who plays director of the Space Task Group in the movie -- says most of the shoot went just as planned ... until a bout of kidney stones wrecked him.

Costner says he shot the last 10 days on the set while using an IV drip of the opioid for pain relief. the first three days, he says he was relatively normal ... the last seven, not so much.

Costner says he had to roll his sleeves down in the movie instead of keeping them up at his elbows like he had to hide the needle marks on his arms.

KC says he's never worked drunk or high -- though that's a bit difficult to believe given he used the morphine in his trailer. Either way, he says he didn't miss a day of shooting -- he's a tough cowboy, after all.

Of course, "Hidden Figures" -- starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Jim Parsons, Glen Powell, Kirsten Dunst, Mahershala Ali and more stars -- became a huge hit, bringing in more than $230 million at the box office.