Helen Mirren - Mirren 'Frightened' To Take Risky Roles As She Grows Older

The Oscar winner was rebellious with her roles in her youth, opting for more controversial or risque parts compared to her acting peers.

But the star admits her desire to shock with her roles has diminished over time - because she likes the "security" of being able to rely on a constant stream of safe jobs.

She tells Total Film magazine, "I try not to be but, you know, as you get older you get more frightened. The realities of life start coming in on you and you realise that you do want security and so on and so forth.

"So you start working towards that and that's when you start losing your idealism, which is sad."

However, Mirren knows she can always rely on the stage if her movie career falters.

She adds, "I've always made pretty... out-there choices that could potentially have destroyed my career. But one thing I've always gone back to is the theatre. I always felt, especially when I was younger, that it didn't matter if it all went wrong because I could go back to the theatre and still show people that's something I could still do."