The movie Helen Mirren desperately begged to be in: “I was shameless”
There are some stars who are unanimously praised as acting royalty, having spent decades refining their craft in the theatre and front of the camera. One of these is undoubtedly Helen Mirren, a British icon in her own right. She has appeared in countless movies and television shows since the 1960s, starring across a range of genres, from thrillers and intense dramas to light-hearted comedies.
Mirren spent a lot of her childhood acting in school productions, leading her to join the National Youth Theatre in London. It didn’t take long for Mirren to gain further opportunities; she appeared to be a natural, easily adapting to the various roles she was given. From there, she became a celebrated member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, where she was lucky enough to play some of the Bard’s most iconic characters, from Cleopatra to Lady Macbeth and Ophelia.
It took a little bit longer for Mirren to become a well-known cinema star, although she appeared in various titles in the ‘60s, receiving her first acting credit from a minor role in the experimental Herostratus. From appearances in the controversial Caligula to performances in celebrated films like The Long Good Friday and The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, Mirren proved her skills every time, although it was in the 2000s that she began appearing in more mainstream works.
With roles in everything from Gosford Park, Calendar Girls and The Queen to Monsters University and Hitchcock, Mirren hasn’t boxed herself into any one genre. As the years have continued and Mirren has dared to try her hand at whatever is thrown her way, some people were still surprised to see her appear in the blockbuster franchise Fast and Furious.
She starred in F9 and Fast X as Queenie, the mother of Deckard and Owen, a role that she actually “begged” for.
“I didn’t ask, I begged! I think I was at some function, and he [Vin Diesel] was there, and I got introduced to him. And I was shameless: ‘Oh God, I’d just love to be in one of your movies! Please let me be in it,’” she told The Hollywood Reporter.
Mirren continued: “And then Vin, with that beautiful, deep voice of his, said: ‘I’ll see what I can do.’ And he did it for me. He found this great little role for me, which was perfect. I’d just never done anything like that before — one of those big, big movies. And, in my vanity, I just loved driving and really wanted to do my own driving in a fast car.”
The actor was also inspired by someone in her family when crafting her character. “Well, Queenie is very close to me. She’s named after my Auntie Queenie — my mum was the 13th of 14 children. And the last eight of those children were all women. So I had a lot of aunts growing up in the East End of London. Working-class women. One was Queenie, and I based the character on her.”
