Helen Mirren to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Berlin Film Festival

By Henry Chu

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Helen Mirren is to be honored with a Golden Bear for lifetime achievement at next February’s Berlin Film Festival.

The Oscar-winning star of “The Queen” and new HBO-Sky drama series “Catherine the Great” will also be the subject of an homage featuring several of her best-known films, including “The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover,” “The Good Liar,” and “The Last Station.”

“ is a strong personality whose powerful portrayals are always impressive,” said Mariette Rissenbeek, the Berlinale’s new executive director. “She surprises us time and again with her interpretation of complex characters. Whether it’s Chris in ‘Calendar Girls’ or Queen Elizabeth II in ‘,’ her portrayals are a paradigm of strong women, and it is our great pleasure to award her the Honorary Golden Bear for her lifetime achievement,”

The upcoming Berlinale is the festival’s 70th edition. Mirren will be presented with her award at a ceremony on Feb. 27, 2020, which will include a screening of “The Queen.”

In addition to her Oscar for “The Queen,” which she won in 2007, Mirren has also received Tony and Olivier awards for her work on stage. She was one of the youngest members to join the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Mirren’s first major film role was as Cora, a painter’s model, in the “Age of Consent,” the 1969 comedy by Michael Powell. Her cinematic breakthrough came in John Mackenzie’s gangster movie, “The Long Good Friday,” in 1980.

Besides “,” in which she plays the title role of the storied and scheming Russian empress, Mirren can currently be seen in the film “The Good Liar” alongside fellow veteran British actor . She also has a role in next year’s “Fast & Furious 9.”

The Berlin Film Festival runs Feb. 20 to March 1, 2020 – a slightly later start than usual, to accommodate next year’s early date for the Academy Awards.