March 16, 2025
Helena Bonham Carter is sharing what she knows about ex Tim Burton’s love of dogs.
In filmmaker Tara Wood's new four-part untitled documentary series about Beetlejuice director Burton, 66, his loved ones and colleagues talk about his love of dogs and a photography series Burton created with his late Chihuahua Poppy, whom he shared with his ex-partner Lisa Marie.
"Poppy, he and Lisa Marie picked up on a street in Tokyo," film editor Chris Lebenzon said.
"How do you get a dog back from Tokyo? Maybe somebody's purse — I'm not sure. And [Poppy] was always with him," he added.
The Wednesday director dated Lisa Marie from 1991 to 2001 and then began dating Harry Potter actress Helena Bonham Carter, with whom he shares two children, including son Billy, 21, and daughter Nell, 17.
"He loves dogs,” said Bonham Carter, adding, "Pepper was his childhood dog."
"He's always felt at ease with dogs. He said very early on in our relationship that he was a dog, so maybe that's where he came from — dog land," she remarked.
The actress also likened her ex’s style of communication with that of dogs.
"[He is] entirely visual," she says. "He doesn't need words — that's why he relates to a dog," she said.
The Tim Burton documentary also features interviews with Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Danny Elfman and more.