In a very literal sense. Both actresses have played more than one British monarch over the course of their careers, and they’ve both played the same role: that of the late Queen Elizabeth II. Mirren starred in Stephen Frears’ 2006 film “The Queen,” in which the head of state learns about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and clashes with then-Prime Minister Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) over how it should be handled. More recently, Colman played Elizabeth II in the third and fourth seasons of “The Crown” (a show created by “The Queen” writer Peter Morgan). Mirren won an Oscar for her performance; Colman won a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy for hers.
This succession into the “grande dame” archetype that Mirren once mastered is emblematic of Colman’s rapidly rising star, and how she’s becoming the go-to actor for such roles. Many people were first introduced to her as the posh, passive-aggressive Godmother in “Fleabag,” and she recently played the moldering-yet-intimidating figure of Miss Havisham in a BBC TV adaptation of “Great Expectations.”
But as Colman apparently learned in the deleted “Barbie” scene, Mirren isn’t ready to pass the torch. She’s still using the torch, thank you very much. In 2013 she reprised the role of Queen Elizabeth II in the stage play “The Audience,” first on London’s West End and then on Broadway. More recently she played the titular role in the miniseries “Catherine the Great,” and joined a different kind of royal family in the “Fast & Furious” franchise when she was cast as Queenie, the matriarch of the Shaw dynasty.
Helen Mirren isn’t giving up her crown(s) any time soon. But if there’s room in the world for more than one Barbie, there’s surely room for more than one Narrator.