Celebrity Gossip's

Christina Ricci was sexually assaulted by a chimpanzee on the set of her latest movie.

The actress, who already has a phobia of the animal, revealed Chim Chim grabbed her left breast while she was filming Penelope.

Christina - who plays a woman born with a pig's nose in the movie - said: "I'm afraid of monkeys, but I had decided not to be afraid of Chim Chim because no one else is. I thought, 'Everyone else thinks he's awesome so just be cool.'

"It's the first day of shooting and I have this kitchen scene where I'm sitting down and Chim Chim is sitting right next to me. Of course, it freaks out during the take and grabs my left breast and will not let go, and he's so strong."

Christina was so terrified she had to be rescued by her fellow co-stars, including Reese Witherspoon, James McAvoy and Richard E Grant.

She revealed: "I'm so freaked out and the rest of the actors are facing the other way so no one sees that this has happened to me and I'm like, 'Help, help' as quietly and calmly as possible so this thing does not freak out any further.

"Finally they got him off me but my fear is completely validated and I did not go near him for the rest of the shoot. Monkeys are crazy and you never what they'll grab onto - I don't like unpredictable animals."