No one doubts that Helen Mirren is a unique and outstanding actress. she turns 75 on July 26. She does not think about retirement – and well!
Helen Mirren was born on July 26, 1945 in London as the daughter of an Englishwoman and a Russian aristocrat. Her father’s family was in Britain during the October Revolution and chose to stay there
Did aristocratic background matter in Helen’s life? It is difficult to judge, although this artist very often plays the roles of queens! It is safe to call Mirren an acting phenomenon. A multifaceted, admired icon of style and class, whose acting talent is the envy of many of her colleagues. Such is Helen Mirren. What does she consider her greatest success? Without a doubt, she says, a successful marriage.
The British have loved Helen Mirren since she played Cleopatra at the age of 20. This role was her ticket to a theatrical career. She began acting in companies such as the Royal Shakespeare Company and the International Centre of Research. West End, Broadway – everywhere she shone! Soon she began appearing in series and films, and with it global fame.
Hollywood did not notice her right away, and she was not attracted there at all. What is the secret of her success? Perhaps simply in her versatility. Despite the large film roles, she still accepted smaller, television ones. She intertwined film and theater roles and slowly strengthened her position.
The role of the title emperor’s wife in Caligula was a breakthrough moment for Mirren. It aroused a lot of controversy, which is not surprising as the film is definitely one of those daring ones. Since then, the British woman has become the embodiment of sex appeal, about which everyone wrote. For decades she has been the symbol of sensuality, which in fact she still is today – something that after fifty years seemed almost impossible to many people.
Playing interesting roles for a mature woman seems very difficult, but for Helen Mirren nothing is impossible. After seventy, the actress still has an appetite for more and is fully committed to all her roles. Critics appreciate it, as evidenced by hundreds of awards and nominations, including the dream of all actors – Oscar!
Has her success made the British actress stand out in any way? People who know her emphasize that Helen is a nice person with a great distance to herself and the world around her. She doesn’t seem to care at all about her age and still likes to stir up controversy. For example, giving a TV interview… in the bathtub! She definitely does not feel like a grandmother, but she has never had children either. As she herself says, she did not feel the maternal instinct. She completely devoted herself to her acting career and succeeded brilliantly.
From the very beginning Mirren has followed the most important rule – it is worth being yourself and not doing something just because it is the right thing to do. She says and does what she thinks, engages in what she believes in. She plays every role one hundred percent – whether she is a queen, a policewoman or the founder of a brothel. She certainly has many more great roles ahead of her – we wish her that!
Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Eco-Age
