The self-described “Nastiest of all Nasty Women” recently gave the commencement address at Tulane University, and her speech was characteristically candid, hilarious, and feminist — Helen Mirren at her best.
The Oscar winner has been outspoken about gender inequality in Hollywood, but as she revealed at the event, she initially shied away from identifying as a feminist. Mirren “believed in the obvious: that women were as capable and as energetic and as inspiring as men, but to join a movement called feminism just seemed too didactic, too political for me.” But she eventually had a change of heart. “I have come to understand that feminism is not an abstract idea but it’s a necessity if we — and really by ‘we,’ I mean you guys — are to move us forward and not backward into ignorance and fearful jealousy,” she told the attendees, according to Vanity Fair. “So now, I am a declared feminist and I would encourage you to be the same.”
Mirren urged the crowd, “Never again allow a group of old, rich, white men to define the healthcare of a country [whose majority is women].”
This is far from the first time Mirren has touched on the toxic effects of patriarchy. In 2015, the “Eye in the Sky” actress was asked about Maggie Gyllenhaal’s admission that, at 37, she was “too old” to play a 55-year-old man’s love interest. She responded bluntly, “It’s fucking outrageous. Fucking outrageous. It’s ridiculous, honestly. It’s so annoying.” Mirren suggested that the double standards for aging male and female actors are nothing new, saying, “We all watched James Bond as he got more and more geriatric, and his girlfriends got younger and younger. It’s so annoying.”
Mirren’s commencement address included a funny bit about the kinds of roles available to actresses. “Today’s speech will contain advice for any of you born in England who decide to become Shakespearean actresses, and end up doing nude scenes in 10 films,” she joked.
“Trumbo,” “Woman in Gold,” and “The Hundred-Foot Journey” are among Mirren’s recent credits. She won an Oscar in 2007 for her role in “The Queen.”
Watch Mirren’s full speech below.
