Even Helen Mirren Is ‘Terrified’ When Starting a New Job
- - Even Helen Mirren Is ‘Terrified’ When Starting a New Job
Katherine SchaffstallAugust 24, 2025 at 1:14 AM
HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images
Helen Mirren may be a critically acclaimed actress, though she admitted to still being "terrified" whenever she starts a new acting job.
“I think it's because every project that you go into is an unknown," Mirren, 80, told People in an interview published on Saturday, August 23. “And each time you enter into a new project, you never know how it's going to be or how the people are going to be and whether the chemistry will be good or a disaster. So stepping into a project is nerve-racking."
Mirren went on to note that "every single" acting job “is completely different and has a different energy and a different requirement."
"You never know if you're going to sort of step up or not,” she continued.
Despite often feeling nervous about new jobs, Mirren explain that she won't show her fears and has embraced the “fake it til you make it" mentality. “A lot of it is pretense, of course, sort of acting,” she said. “You feel insecure, but you pretend you don't. And we all do it, don't we?”
“Walking into a party or walking into a job interview or whatever it is you're having to deal with," the Thursday Murder Club actress said. "We all have sort of gird our loins for want of a better word."
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She went on to explain that the "unknown" of a project is what makes her nervous. "And that is the thing that sort of galvanizes you and drives you forward is the fear and the excitement of that,” Mirren said before pointed out her concerns about playing Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen, which she won an Oscar.
"That was very unknown territory at the time. And as you are probably aware, the British have a very extraordinary — and not exactly ambivalent — but a very profound emotional relationship with their monarchy and especially with the Queen because she was there for such a long time," she explained of her concerns for the role. "Generations of people, including my generation, had been born and lived through her. She was such an incredible icon. So taking her, doing that, what was, we had no idea how that was going to be received.”
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 23, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
