She’s co-starring with former 007 star Pierce Brosnan in ‘MobLand.’

Helen Mirren

Photo: Getty Images

Helen Mirren is weighing in on the discourse about casting the next James Bond. The Academy Award-winning actress, who co-stars with Pierce Brosnan in the Paramount+ series MobLand, revealed why she doesn’t support a woman playing the role of 007 while talking about the “profound sexism” of the franchise.

During an interview with The Standard, the conversation turned to the James Bond franchise, which was bought by Amazon MGM Studios back in February. Mirren has family ties to the series, as her late cousin Tania Mallet played Bond girl Tilly Masterson, and her MobLand co-star Brosnan famously played the British secret agent between 1995 and 2002. While the actress emphasized she’s a “massive fan” of Brosnan, as well as “very lovely” former 007 actor Daniel Craig, she revealed she wasn’t a big fan of the franchise.

Helen Mirren with Pierce Brosnan, who played James Bond

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“The whole series of James Bond, it was not my thing,” she told the publication. “It really wasn’t. I never liked James Bond. I never liked the way women were in James Bond.” The Queen actress also shared why she’s against an actress taking on the iconic role, instead arguing for portrayals of real-life female spies.

“The whole concept of James Bond is drenched and born out of profound sexism,” Mirren explained. “Women have always been a major and incredibly important part of the Secret Service, they always have been. And very brave. If you hear about what women did in the French Resistance, they’re amazingly, unbelievably courageous. So I would tell real stories about extraordinary women who’ve worked in that world.”

Helen Mirren with Tom Hardy and Pierce Brosnan, who previously played James Bond

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Mirren also opened up about her own experiences with sexism in the film industry when she was younger, looking back at a 1975 interview with Sir Michael Parkinson where she was asked if the size of her breasts prevented her from being taken seriously as an actress.

Helen Mirren

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The star admitted that the commentary bothered her at the time, sharing, “I felt like I was carrying this thing on my back. That it was kind of attached to me. It didn’t really mean anything, as far as I was concerned, but it was attached to me, and I couldn’t escape it.”

Mirren continued, “But then I also realized, you just have to live with the cards you have been dealt. I came to terms with it, and you’ve got to have a sense of humor about it.”