Washington, Sept 20 : It took director Shekhar Kapur and Cate Blanchett ten years after their Oscar nominated movie ‘Elizabeth’ hit the screens to team up once again for a sequel. And, Kapur insists that Blanchett is the one to blame.

Blanchett takes on the mantle of the Virgin Queen once again in ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age’, and Kapur jokingly reveals that though he has been trying for long to get Blanchett to act in one of his movies in the interim, she has been turning him down.

"I tried to get Cate in a lot of films with me, but she wouldn't say yes to anything," Variety quoted the director, as saying.

However, Blanchett insists that it was worth the wait, for making a movie on Elizabeth I before this may have been the wrong decision.

"I think I've had the chance to do a lot of different things since then, and in the end, apart from Shekhar's persuasiveness, I think it was time," said Blanchett.

The sequel revolves around Elizabeth’s relationship with Sir Walter Raleigh, played by Clive Owen.

And though the movie diverts from what has been historically pieced together about their relationship, Kapur is adamant that taking creative license in an historical epic is a must.

"History is an interpretation of what was, and it's interpreted again and again, until a hundred years later, you are left with bare facts. The only reason to make a historical film is if the essence of what you choose of the history of that moment is relevant to contemporary times," he said.

Added Blanchett: "These films play loose and fast with history. If you read the history books, it's indisputable. But there is something incredibly modern about her. That's why I enjoyed this script. It feels very current."

"Once a script began to emerge that had a love triangle at the beginning of it, then I found it interesting. And also the backdrop of this film is so epic. But at the center of it was an internal struggle with current and domestic concerns. Individual concerns about the aging process, fertility and attractiveness. I felt she was at war with herself as much as with Spain."

The film had its World Premiere on September 9, 2007 at the Toronto International Film Festival. (With inputs from ANI)