Helen mirren, 79, leans into the 'constant learning curve' of life | members only

Helen mirren, 79, leans into the 'constant learning curve' of life | members only

Play all audios:

Loading...

Helen Mirren, 79, has a career that spans five decades and has earned her an Academy Award, four Emmys, three Golden Globes and a Tony, so it would be understandable if she wanted to take a


break or slow down. But “no, not particularly,” says Mirren, who at the moment plays both the badass crime family matriarch Maeve Harrigan to Pierce Brosnan’s patriarch in the new gangster


series _MobLand_, premiering March 30 on Paramount +, and the more practical matriarch Cara Dutton in the _Yellowstone_ prequel _1923,_ currently running on Paramount +.  “I’m sure one


day I’ll think, _Ugh, I’ve had enough of this_, but not yet.” AARP recently spoke with Mirren about what motivates her to keep working; why we should take note of the paisley housedress she


wears in the upcoming movie _Goodbye June_; and the young actors she’s eager to work with. _This interview has been edited for length and clarity._ (From left) Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan


and Anson Boon in “MobLand,” streaming on Paramount+. Luke Varley/Paramount+ PIERCE BROSNAN, 71, ALONG WITH HARRISON FORD, 82, WHO PLAYS YOUR HUSBAND IN _1923_, ARE JUST THE LATEST IN A LONG


LINE OF WONDERFUL COSTARS FOR YOU. IS THERE SOMEONE YOU’D STILL LIKE TO SHARE THE SCREEN WITH? I was very lucky. I’ve worked with some great directors and some great actors, but there’s


always room for one more. There are some good young actors coming up now — not the next generation; I’m speaking of like 10 generations later. Leo Woodall is fantastic. And the man of the


hour, Timothée Chalamet. James Norton is a fantastic actor. I’d love to work with him one day. There really are a lot of them. I have just worked with Alden Ehrenreich, who’s a fabulous


actor, doing a film [_Switzerland_] where I play Patricia Highsmith.  WAS IT FUN TO WORK ON A PROJECT WITH PIERCE AGAIN? YOU WERE BOTH IN _THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY_ YEARS AGO, RIGHT? We never


met on [_The Long Good Friday_, released in 1980]. We were never together in the same scene ever — we just happened to be in the same movie. But it is funny coming together because I suspect


that _The Long Good Friday_ was very much an inspiration for Guy Ritchie [_MobLand_'s executive producer, 56]. We had _The Lavender Hill Mob_ [1951] and things like that, but I think


that was the first time a real sort of hard-edged British gangster film had ever been made, and it was quite revolutionary in that sense. WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO WATCH? WHAT WAS YOUR LAST BINGE?


Well, I’ve just been watching Netflix’s _Il Gattopardo_, the Italian TV series based on [Giuseppe di] Lampedusa’s book _The Leopard_, which was a famous film by [Luchino] Visconti. But the


wonderful thing about a TV series is you can go into the characters and the history in a much deeper way. I do love a great costume drama. I’m very excited about _Conclave _because Robert


Harris is my favorite author, actually, along with Rose Tremain, my two favorite authors. He’s a great writer. And I read _Conclave_. So I’m looking forward to seeing that [the film is based


on the 2016 novel of the same name by Harris]. I haven’t seen it yet.