She frolics in a bathtub, dazzles in a bareback gown and gets felt up by Chinese actor Tong Dawei, 34.

Taiwanese model-actress Lin Chi-ling said that scenes in her new movie, Switch, are her sexiest to date.

In a phone interview from Hong Kong, the 38-year-old said she turned up the heat for her new role, but it did not transform her into a screen siren.

In spy thriller Switch, which opened in June, Lin plays Lisa, who gangs up with Japanese gangster Yamamoto (Tong) to steal half of a worldfamous painting, Dwelling In The Fuchun Mountains.

Taking on different disguises, including that of a nun, she attempts to distract special agent Xiao Jinhan (Hong Kong actor Andy Lau), who is tasked to protect the painting.

She also takes on a second role, as Yamamoto's late mother in the movie.

Lin, often referred to as Taiwan's top female model, made her big screen debut in John Woo's two-part period epic Red Cliff (2008 and 2009).

This is her seventh movie.

Lin realised that Switch was her sexiest role to date when certain scenes made headlines in the Taiwanese and Chinese media.

They include her frolicking in a bubble bath in a bid to seduce Lau's character and Tong kissing her 34C bosom and stroking her legs.

Her scenes with Tong, 34, who also co-starred with her in Red Cliff Part II, are so steamy that she was worried about how his wife would take it.

"He's married (to Chinese actress Guan Yue), so I have to apologise to his wife!" said Lin with a laugh.

Tong was quoted in the Chinese media as saying he felt "shy" about the scenes with Lin and apologised to her many times during filming.

"Every scene exists for a reason, so I just went ahead with the filming," she said.

"Without giving away too much, the scene where Dawei touched me was appropriate because his character had complicated feelings towards mine."

Ironically, it was not too long ago that she cancelled a kissing scene with Taiwanese singer-actor Jay Chou in The Treasure Hunter (2009) and settled for a hug instead.

"While filming Switch, I didn't think about whether these were my sexiest scenes to date, but now that people are talking about it, I do feel so," she said in Mandarin.

"While filming, all I felt was that this role is sexy, bold and coquettish, so the scenes were in line with her character."

Lin said the script did not contain detailed descriptions of the steamy scenes but she was not rudely shocked after finding out on set what she had to do.

"I trusted the director and crew to execute the scenes professionally," she said.

But don't expect Lin to take on similarly sexy or sexier roles in future.

"I try not to do things I've already done before," she said.

"I like to take risks in the roles I play."

However, Lin's sexy scenes may not make it to her homeland.

The Taiwanese media reported that the Taiwanese version of Switch is reportedly 40 minutes shorter than the version shown in China.

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