British actress Helen Mirren poses with a poster for her new movie "The Queen" at its U.S. premiere at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York. The movie, about the royal family in the wake of Princess Diana's death, opened the New York Film Festival.
"The DaVinci Code" director Ron Howard arrives for The New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York. The 17-day film festival will feature dozens of films including Pedro Almodovar's "Volver" and Sofia Coppola's "Marie Antoinette."
"The Queen" director Stephen Frears, right, greets fellow director Brian De Palma at the New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York.
Actor James Cromwell and his guest arrive for The New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York. Cromwell plays the queen's husband, Prince Philip, in the movie about the British royal family.
Actor Jeremy Irons arrives for the New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York.
Actress Helen Mirren curtsies on the red carpet at the U.S. premiere of her latest movie "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York.
Actor Matthew Modine arrives for The New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York.
Fashion designer Mary McFadden arrives for the New York Film Festival opening night premiere of "The Queen" at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, Sept. 29, 2006, in New York.
Helen Mirren plays Queen Elizabeth II in "The Queen," a movie being screened as part of the 44th Annual New York Film Festival (Sept. 29 through Oct. 15, 2006). "The Queen" captures Elizabeth during the days after Diana's 1997 death in a Paris car crash, when a tide of public grief turned to anger at a royal family, which was seen as cold and aloof.
Helen Mirren attends a press conference at The Walter Reade Theatre for her new movie, "The Queen," in New York on Sept. 27, 2006. The British actress won an Emmy in August for playing England's 16th century queen in the TV miniseries "Elizabeth I." Then she took the best actress prize at the Venice Film Festival for depicting current monarch Elizabeth II in "The Queen."
Helen Mirren, shown here at the Sept. 27 press conference, told The Associated Press she was terrified by the challenge of playing a living icon, a woman whose image is famous around the world but whose internal life remains a mystery.
Helen Mirren plays Elizabeth II as a dignified, intelligent woman who possesses a dry wit. She's all too aware of the tradition, protocol and privilege that both sustain and constrain her. She tells a commoner she envies his ability to vote in elections, "the sheer joy of being partial."
Writer Peter Morgan answers questions at a press conference at The Walter Reade Theatre for the new movie "The Queen" in New York on Sept. 27, 2006.
Actress Helen Mirren and writer Peter Morgan share a laugh during a press conference at The Walter Reade Theatre for their new movie, "The Queen," in New York on Sept. 27, 2006. "The Queen" is one of several films being screened as a part of the 44th Annual New York Film Festival (Sept. 29 through Oct. 15, 2006).
Director Stephen Frears, from left, actress Helen Mirren and actor James Cromwell answer questions at a press conference at The Walter Reade Theatre on Sept. 27, 2006. In "The Queen," Cromwell plays Prince Philip. Others in the cast include Alex Jennings as Prince Charles and Sylvia Syms as the Queen Mother Elizabeth, and Michael Sheen as Tony Blair, then the newly elected prime minister.
Actor James Cromwell, who plays Prince Philip in "The Queen," attends a press conference in New York on Sept. 27, 2006. The film shows the royal family secluded at their Balmoral estate in Scotland, unaware of the mayhem unfolding in London in the wake of Diana's death. Flowers pile up outside Buckingham Palace, people weep in the streets and the tabloids foment anger at the distant royals.
Director Stephen Frears and actress Helen Mirren answer questions at a New York press conference Sept. 27, 2006, for their new movie, "The Queen." Frears, whose films include "Mrs. Henderson Presents," "High Fidelity" and "The Grifters," and screenwriter Peter Morgan used archival news footage to help set the plot in its time.
Since finishing work on "The Queen," Mirren, 61, has often been asked what the queen would make of it. She likes to quote the answer given by royal biographer Robert Lacey, an adviser on the film: "I think the queen will say, 'Well, that could have been worse. Could I have a gin and tonic, please?'"