This is the fourth Academy Award nomination for Dame Helen Mirren (65). She is nominated for the historical drama The Last Station where she plays the wife of Russian writer Tolstoy. She stars alongside Christopher Plummer and James McAvoy.
Mirren already won an Oscar for her role in The Queen (2006) as an Actress in a Leading role and was nominated for Actress in a Supporting Role for Gosford Park (2001) and The Madness of King George (1994).
Helen Mirren, an established actress of theater and film is Russian-British. Her birth name is Ilyena Vasilievna Mironov (her father was of Russian origin and her mother English).
Mirren has no children and says: "I'm just not interested. I've no maternal instinct whatsoever. And I don't think I'm so unusual. I think an awful lot of women don't really want children but feel they ought to. They think there's something wrong with them if they don't want to, but it's not true.” But she doesn’t mind playing step-mother to the children her husband, American director Taylor Hackford has from a previous marriage. She adds, "I'm so happy I don't have children. But I do love children and I've got family, and Taylor has children that I'm involved with - and with great pleasure - but it's just not for me."
She got into character so well whilst playing The Queen that towards the end of filming the crew started to act very courteous in her presence. The film depicts the week following the death of princess Diana and the crisis moments for the monarchy. The real Queen Elizabeth II is said to have never watched the film because she does not want to relive “one of the worst weeks of her life”.
Helen Mirren as Countess Sofya Tolstoy in a scene from The Last Station.
