Helen Mirren has spoken out about her decision to portray Golda Meir, the former Prime Minister of Israel, in the 2023 biopic Golda, amid allegations of ‘Jewface’.
The veteran English actress, 78, faced backlash for taking on the role alongside Liev Schreiber and Camille Cottin because she is not Jewish.
Mirren told The Daily Telegraph on Saturday although she understands both points of view she is proud of her work in the biographical drama.
‘I think the discussion has to be had and there are arguments on both sides. I’ve been a Mossad agent [in the 2010 movie The Debt]. You don’t get much more Jewish than that!’ she said.
Mirren looks virtually unrecognisable playing the late Israeli PM in the movie, donning a grey wig and prosthetic nose to get into character.
Helen Mirren (pictured) has spoken out about her decision to portray Golda Meir, the former Prime Minister of Israel, in the 2023 biopic Golda, amid allegations of ‘Jewface’
‘I felt like her, honestly. You’re laying yourself open to profound criticism. You could blow it terribly’ Helen said.
She added she remembers when Meir served as Israel’s PM from 1969 – 1974 and drew on her first-hand experience to ensure her performance was authentic.
‘It was the first time a woman had led a country. And I was absolutely excited, blown away. It was like a miracle. It was fantastic.
‘Playing the role, I had to investigate it and really dive into who Golda was, what the war was, what the implications for Israel were.’
The veteran English actress, 78, faced backlash for taking on the role alongside Liev Schreiber and Camille Cottin because she is not Jewish (pictured in the movie)
Mirren told The Daily Telegraph on Saturday although she understands both points of view she is proud of her work in the biographical drama
The London-born thespian then said she found it easier to portray Meir once she came to terms with the fact she was just providing an interpretation of who she was.
‘I can’t be as she is. She was best at being her. Of course, she was still alive. I’m an artist and doing a portrait. It’s my artistic understanding of this person. I think that relaxed me as well with Golda.’
The movie was released in cinemas in October and Mirren’s casting immediately raised eyebrows.
In an interview with Radio Times, she pointed out that it’s not the first time she’s played a Jew and revealed she is convinced she has Jewish heritage somewhere down the line.
Discussing the controversial casting, she mused: ‘The whole issue of casting has exploded out of the water fairly recently.
Mirren looks virtually unrecognisable playing the late Israeli PM Golda Meir (pictured) in the movie, donning a grey wig and prosthetic nose to get into character
‘I’ve had other Jewish roles [in Woman in Gold and The Debt], but not an uber-Jewish role like Golda Meir.
‘I did tell [Guy Nattiv, the Israeli Jewish director] that I’m not Jewish, in case he thought I was. I said, “If that’s an issue, I’ll step away, no problem.” But he said, “No, it’s not an issue. I want you to play Golda.” And off we went.’
The British actress, was born in London to a Russian immigrant father and an English mother, went on to reveal that she thinks she has Jewish ancestry and considered taking a DNA test to check.
