In a quick interview, 'The Queen' actress says that making a film about the Ukrainian president's bravery amid the Russian invasion is too soon as 'we don't know yet' the end of 'that story.'
- March 3, 2022
AceShowbiz - Helen Mirren has reacted to thousands of social media users' request to make a film about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his bravery amid the Russian full-scale invasion. In a new interview, "The Queen" actress said that she believes it's too soon to make the biopic.
On Wednesday, March 2, the 76-year-old actress spoke to TMZ at Los Angeles International Airport about the prospects of the film. She told the interviewer, "Culture always responds to what is happening in the world."
"The end of that story, we don't know yet, clearly," Mirren continued. The actress portraying Betty McLeish in "The Good Liar" further suggested, "Um, what I do feel is that we must support Ukraine, especially supporting the artists [amid the crisis]."
Elsewhere during the quick interview, Mirren was asked about social media users' plea to give Jeremy Renner the lead role of the possible biopic. In response, the actress replied, "I wouldn't make a choice about that at this point," before praising the Hawkeye depicter in Marvel Cinematic Universe, "[Jeremy Renner] is a wonderful actor."
Amid the Ukraine-Russia crisis, many social media users applauded Zelensky's bravery and asked any biopic screenwriters to make a draft. "Is it obvious to everybody else that Jeremy Renner is the only logical option to play Zelensky in the biopic screenwriters are almost certainly drafting already?" one asked on Twitter, sharing side-by-side images of the two men. " 'Zelensky', the new biopic starring Jeremy Renner," another fan enthused.
Indeed, Zelensky and Renner bear striking similarities to one another. The Ukrainian President, who is 5 feet 7 inches tall, is a touch shorter than the actor, who stands at 5 feet 9 inches tall. The pair both possess deep-set eyes, short brown hair and an almost identical jawline.
However, the fan-casting quickly sparked backlash, with many reminding Twitter users that Ukraine is in the midst of a real war. "Ukrainians are losing their lives and having their homes/businesses destroyed and we really have people tweeting 'Jeremy Renner should play Zelensky in the movie about this!!' " one critic blasted. "That's the most pathetic and tasteless thing you could possibly be thinking about right now."
"There are people tweeting about whether Jeremy Renner should play Volodymyr Zelensky in a movie about the Ukraine war. This isn't entertainment," a separate person argued. "People are dying. People are being displaced from their homes."
