Helena Bonham Carter interview

The lack of a love story in Planet Of The Apes is not just a disappointment to cinema-goers. Actress Helena Bonham Carter says she was up for a bit of cross-species romancing, but Hollywood certainly wasn't.

The former queen of British corset dramas stars as a chimp in Tim Burton's 100 million dollar reworking of Planet Of The Apes. Some thought was reportedly given to love scenes between Bonham Carter's Princess Ari and the human hunk she falls for, played by Mark Wahlberg - but was later dismissed.

Although romance would have livened up this rather odd reworking of the 1968 classic, any prospect of hanky-panky between the two proved too much for Burton, the creator of Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood.

"I would have been up for more romance, but it's a family film, they didn't want to go there," admits Bonham Carter. "We did flirt, but there wasn't much else to do."

All we're left with is a kiss and some jealous looks from Ari when Wahlberg's stranded astronaut Leo casts eyes on the nubile human Daena (Estella Warren).

Instead of a sequel to the original, Burton has gone for a big story change, taken loosely from Pierre Boulle's novel. The apes once again have turned the tables and an astronaut finds himself amongst repressed humans, until a rebellion develops.

Throw in time travel, an unknown planet and a strange ending and you have a less morally symbolic but more visually compelling film.

Burton explains. "Our intention was to make a remake that wasn't a remake. You can't really remake the Planet Of The Apes feeling and vibe of the original which was very 60s. You have to look at it from a different perspective."

Certainly Bonham Carter's casting as an ape, not only involved heavy prosthetic make-up, it also saw the actress playing a part as far removed from her usual period roles as it is possible to get.

But then the 35-year-old Londoner, who has starred in A Room With A View and Howard's End, has been trying hard to distance herself from the Edwardian middle class tag that has dogged her for so long.

She played it dark and dangerous in Fight Club and plans to be the femme fatale in Steve Martin's dental comedy Novacaine. She's also due on British screens soon as a fiesty solo mother in Women Talking Dirty.

Burton adds: "Even when they smile at you, they don't really mean it the way humans do. They may be close to us yet they can rip us to shreds."

Planet Of The Apes looks like being Bonham Carter's biggest box office hit to date. Already the film is topping the US returns, even if the critics have been lukewarm.

But whatever happens with her increasing forays into Hollywood, Bonham Carter says she won't be deterred.

"A lot of actors go into agony about what they've done, but I've always felt like there's no point in beating yourself up afterwards."