Helen Mirren knows something about playing royalty. Portraying a ruthless crime boss was a seamless next step

By CNN Newsource

Published March 27, 2025 6:47 AM

By Dan Heching, CNN

(CNN) — Dame Helen Mirren is known for her regal screen presence, having won an Oscar for playing Elizabeth II in 2006’s “The Queen,” just one of her celebrated portrayals of royalty or nobility.

It would seem as something of a departure, then, to see her in the new thriller crime series “MobLand” – where she plays Maeve, the scheming and martini-swilling matriarch of a powerful London crime dynasty opposite Pierce Brosnan. But Mirren thinks Maeve fits quite well into her esteemed repertoire.

“I think of all the characters I’ve played, the closest I’ve come to playing a character like Maeve was playing Lady Macbeth in a Scottish play many years ago,” Mirren said in a recent interview with CNN. “She has a lot of those qualities: profoundly ambitious, and ruthless, absolutely ruthless.”

“I guess Elizabeth I (who she portrayed in the Emmy-winning 2005 miniseries), and probably Catherine the Great of Russia (who she played in a 2019 miniseries) may be sort of similar, but they were more restricted by their culture and their station,” Mirren added.

Co-directed by Guy Ritchie, “MobLand” features Tom Hardy – who, along with Brosnan, was a major reason for Mirren to become involved – as the “fixer” for the Harrigan family, cleaning up their many messes.

Mirren thoroughly enjoyed working on the show, which she called “a dark soap opera.” Her character calls the shots, drink in hand, and knows the score before everybody else. Mirren isn’t interested in the power play only, however.

“What makes a character actually interesting is not their power, it’s their vulnerability,” she shared, going on to openly wonder what, if any, vulnerability Maeve might exhibit. “She’s a villain in a piece about villains. It will be interesting to see, ultimately hopefully, where Maeve goes.”

As for whether Mirren would consider taking on any royal roles again in the future, she said “never say never, but it’s unlikely. I feel I’ve done all the really interesting ones.” (Another standout: her portrayal of Queen Charlotte in 1994’s “The Madness of King George.”)

“If something pops up that is really extremely different from what I’ve just done, then I’ll go for it,” she shared about her process of selecting roles. “And if something pops up, it might be great, but it’s very similar to something I’ve just done, I’ll usually step away from it.”

“Because I just love to constantly be upsetting my own cart, you know, and make life difficult for myself,” Mirren added with a queenly smile.

“MobLand” premieres Sunday, March 30 on Paramount+.