"Probably psychotic" - Helen Mirren opens up about her highly ambitious character in MobLand
Helen Mirren has appeared in two critically acclaimed shows on Paramount+ in the first half of 2025 - 1923 and MobLand. She played Cara Dutton in Taylor Sheridan's Western drama prequel series 1923, opposite Harrison Ford. Meanwhile, she's starring as Maeve Harrigan in the crime drama series MobLand, opposite Pierce Brosnan.
In her interview with Parade magazine on March 30, 2025, Helen Mirren reflected on the similarities between the two characters. The Oscar-winning actress noted that both are powerful Irish matriarchs. She added that the similarities end there, as Cara Dutton is a compassionate and loving person:
"Maeve is much more manipulative. ... Maeve is a much more viper-ish, tricky character. She's very manipulative, very ambitious, probably psychotic, actually."
Helen Mirren's character in MobLand explored
Helen Mirren plays Maeve Harrigan, the wife of the crime boss Conrad Harrigan (Pierce Brosnan) in MobLand.
She's warm and affectionate towards her family members, except Seraphina, as she was born from one of Conrad's many illicit affairs. The mob matriarch is a key player in the show's escalating series of events and pulls the strings from behind without her husband's knowledge.
The first instance takes place in the premiere episode when she forces Conrad's hand in killing his childhood friend, Archie, by claiming him to be an informant for his arch-nemesis, Richie Stevenson. Maeve also defends her grandson, Eddie, after he stabs Tommy Stevenson (Richie's son) to death despite his actions potentially leading to an all-out gang war.
In episode 4, titled Rat Trap, she's revealed to have ordered Tommy's murder to "send a message" to the Stevensons to not take the Harrigans for granted. In a chilling moment, she tells her grandson that they will be sending another message to Richie soon, proving that she could be just as ruthless as her husband.
Maeve attends Tommy's funeral with the rest of the Harrigans in the next episode. With tensions running high on both sides, she approaches Tommy's mother, Vron, to offer her condolences. But she bitterly rebukes her while criticizing her appearance. That night, Maeve calls her favorite family henchman, Paul, and asks him to take out Vron as revenge.
Sure enough, Vron is blown up in a car explosion the very next day, at the end of episode 5.
A look at Helen Mirren's decades-long career
Helen Mirren began her acting career nearly 60 years ago in an uncredited role in the 1966 film, Press for Time. Over the years, she has starred in critically acclaimed and commercially-successful films like The Madness of King George, Excalibur, Trumbo, The Last Station, Raising Helen, The Fate of the Furious and Gosford Park, to name a few.
She won her first and only Oscar for playing Queen Elizabeth II in the docudrama film The Queen, directed by Stephen Frears.
The celebrated actress is best remembered for her award-winning turn as DCI Jane Tennison in the police procedural drama series, Prime Suspect. She has portrayed the controversial author Ayn Rand in Showtime's The Passion of Ayn Rand as well as historical figures like Queen Elizabeth I in HBO's Elizabeth I and Catherine the Great in the miniseries Catherine the Great released in 2019.
Also Read: "A woman of Faith"- When Helen Mirren made her feelings clear about Taylor Sheridan's portrayal of Cara Dutton in 1923
Viewers can stream all episodes of MobLand and 1923 on Paramount+.
