Queen of the Screen: Helen Mirren’s Incredible Journey to Becoming Hollywood
Royalty
Helen Mirren is one of the most well-respected and successful actresses in
the world today. With an impressive resume across film, TV and theater,
Mirren has become synonymous with high-quality character and dramatic
acting.
But in her early years, she had to fend off a great deal of criticism and
dismissal thanks to her looks—because she was regarded as too voluptuous to
be taken seriously!
Let’s take a look at Mirren’s incredible rise to fame, and how she rose
above some of the most infamous sexist comments in history, to become the
internationally acclaimed dramatic actress she is today.
Helen Mirren is one of the most well-respected and successful actresses in
the world today. With an impressive resume across film, TV and theater,
Mirren has become synonymous with high-quality character and dramatic
acting.
But in her early years, she had to fend off a great deal of criticism and
dismissal thanks to her looks—because she was regarded as too voluptuous to
be taken seriously!
Let’s take a look at Mirren’s incredible rise to fame, and how she rose
above some of the most infamous sexist comments in history, to become the
internationally acclaimed dramatic actress she is today.
As Mirren grew up in London, she drew on her parents’ professions for
her inspiration and creative outlet.
Her father initially was a viola player with the London Philharmonic
Orchestra, before leaving to become a taxi driver and driving test
examiner, and a Ministry of Transport civil servant. Her mother,
Kathleen Rogers, came from a family of butchers—who in fact supplied
meat to Queen Victoria!
Yet again, Mirren grew up with a royal influence that would come to
define her career—in more ways than one.
It’s probably pretty surprising for you to learn that Helen
Mirren was born to a Russian father and originally had such a
Russian-sounding birth name. After all, she would one day grow
up to become one of the quintessential British actresses,
representing old-fashioned and royal grace and charm in so many
of her classic movies and stage shows.
Well, that’s partly because when Mirren was 9 years old, her
father decided to anglicize their surname—taking Mironov to the
more English-sounding “Mirren”. And so Iliana Mironova became
Helen Mirren—and the name of Britain’s future biggest star was
born.
Even from an early age, the young Mirren knew that she
wanted to pursue a career in the arts. It was at the age
of 13, watching a production of Hamlet on stage, that she decided she wanted to become an
actress.
"I was blown away by all this over-the-top drama," she
said to The Times. "We grew up without TV and never went to the cinema, so
after Hamlet, all I wanted to do was get back into that world where
all those fabulous things were possible."
But she had no idea just how fabulous—and famous—she would
one day become.
Even though Mirren knew that a career as an actress
was her true ambition, this wasn’t the path expected
of her by her parents—who wanted her to pursue a
more traditional professional path.
They sent her to a catholic school by the seasise,
St. Bernard’s High School in Southend-on-Sea. While
she was there, her English teacher noticed her
incredible acting talent, and encouraged her to
audition for the National Youth Theatre. Mirren
auditioned and was accepted by the group—but her
parents had other ideas.
Even though Mirren knew she wanted to be an
actress more than anything, her parents
insisted that she followed a more traditional
and stable career path.
Despite the fact that she had been accepted to
the prestigious National Youth Theatre, they
refused to let her join the troupe,
encouraging her instead to head to further
education.
And so Mirren enrolled into a teacher training
course to keep her parents happy—but she knew
where her real ambitions and destiny lay.
Despite her parents’ reticence at her
entering the world of theater, Mirren
could not stay away from the stage for
long, and by the age of 20 she had
secured the lead role in the stage
show of Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra.
Her performance was so good that it
led to her securing an agent and a
place with the Royal Shakespeare
Company.
Parts in productions such as The Revenger's Tragedy Troilus and Cressida and MacBeth followed, winning her great
critical acclaim.
But they also won her a different kind
of attention—one not entirely welcome…
Image by Douglas
Hess/ANL/Shutterstock (3435105a)
Even though Mirren was taking on
high-brow and critically acclaimed
roles, becoming a reputable
Shakespearean actress, many audiences
and critics began taking notice of her
looks as well as her talent.
Mirren was so beautiful and brought an
innate sex appeal to each of her roles,
that people began noticing her more for
her appearance than for her acting
skills!
Around this time she became known as
“The Sex Queen of Stratford”, a title
that would come to irritate and amuse
her in equal measure.
As Mirren’s fame and reputation continued to increase, she began
to look for other sources of inspiration to keep herself
grounded and at peace despite the craziness unfolding all around
her.
During this time, she travelled the world and found meaning in a
Mayan phrase “In La’kesh.” She liked it so much that she had it
tattooed on her left hand!
“’In La’Kesh’ means ‘You are my other self. We are one. I am
another yourself.’ In other words, ‘We’re all in this
together,’” Mirren explains. “Remember that, so that you can
make some sense out of and fix this crazy, crazy world.”
And things were only about to get crazier.
Even though Mirren was bemused by her increasing reputation as a sex
symbol despite her undoubtable skill as a serious actress, she didn’t
let this stop her taking on the roles that she wanted to do.
In 1980 she starred in the lavish historical movie Caligula, a stunning—and rather saucy—depiction of Ancient Rome. The movie
was a bit of a flop, but continued to raise Mirren’s reputation—both
in her talent and her beauty.
But the focus on the actress’s appearance was about to culminate in
one particular interview that would become infamous in TV history.
Helen Mirren saw no reason that her natural talent as an actress
should be precluded by her appearing beautiful. But in one
infamous interview in 1975, talk show Michael Parkinson quizzed
her on whether she might be too sexy to be taken seriously.
Mirren hit headlines with her cool and composed approach,
rubbishing the notion that sex appeal is in any way opposed to
being talented or respectable.
"Because serious actresses can't have big bosoms, is that what you
mean?" she challenged Parkinson over his sexist comments—to cheers
from the crowd.
As Parkinson continued to try and suggest that a woman could not
be both talented and beautiful, the young star refused to take any of his
nonsense.
"I think it might detract from the performance," Parkinson said of
her beauty. "If you know what I mean."
"I can't say that would necessarily be true," Mirren replied
coolly. "I mean, what a crummy performance if people are obsessed
with the size of your bosom over anything else. I would hope that
the performance and the play and the living relationship between
all the people on the stage and all the people in the audience
would overcome such … boring questions, really."
Mirren’s calm and dignified response to Michael Parkinson’s sexist
comments have become the stuff of TV legend. Mirren herself
revealed that though she is incredibly proud today of how she
reacted, at the time she actually felt very uncomfortable.
"I have to say, I didn't realize how impressive I'd been," she
said to Glamor magazine. "I was really, really good!" Later, she adds, "I
didn't look nervous, weirdly, but my heart was pounding. I was
terrified."
And in fact, it turned out that she had good reason to be nervous
about standing up to him.
Even though nowadays it is pretty obvious that Michael Parkinson’s
interview questions were inappropriate and downright sexist, the
truth was that back in the 70s, a lot of people were holding onto
the same prejudices—and actually blaming Mirren for not responding
properly!
"The response in general was, 'How could you be so argumentative
and difficult?'” Mirren said, remembering the backlash she
received for defending herself. “But I wasn't—I kept my good humor
and my temper. I thought I actually handled it well."
Despite the controversy around her infamous interview with
Parkinson, Mirren didn’t let this stop her from continuing to
deliver increasingly praised and critically acclaimed movie roles.
In 1979 she received widespread praise for her role in the
gangster movie The Long Good Friday, and in 1981 she starred in the equally successful Arthurian
fantasy Excalibur.
But Mirren came away with more than just praise for her work
on Excalibur—she
also found love on the set of the iconic movie.
While Mirren was working on the 1981 movie Excalibur, she not only honed her acting skills even more and built up her
experience, but she also enriched her life with something of a
more personal nature.
Because it was on the set of this movie that she met fellow actor
Liam Neeson. The two quickly got together, and eventually moved in
together.
“We didn’t (just) date,” Mirren revealed in an interview with
Graham Norton. “We lived together for four years–we were a serious
item for a while. Lucky me!”
And it wasn’t just her love life that was looking brilliant and
successful during this time. The early 1980s saw a huge soar in
fame and critical acclaim for the talented actress—and in 1984 she
starred in her first award winning role in the movie Cal.
Mirren’s performance won her the Cannes Film Festival prize for
Best Actress, as well as a British Academy of Film and Television
Arts Award.
But despite her soaring career, her romance behind the scenes was
beginning to go sour.
Even though Mirren was becoming increasingly successful and
adding a host of prestigious awards to her cabinet, sadly
her romance with Liam Neeson came to an end after living
together for four years.
Though she must have been heartbroken by the split, Mirren
embodied the spirit of the phrase “the show must go on”, and
went on to star in the movie White Nights in 1985.
Little did she know that this movie would lead her to her
own white knight—in more ways than one.
While Mirren was filming the classic 1985 movie White Nights, it wasn’t just her acting ability and stunning beauty
that was getting her noticed.
Though she was always well-known for getting on well with
her co-stars, Mirren struck up a particularly strong bond
with director Taylor Hackford—and before they knew it, one
thing had led to the other, and the two were very much in
love.
They soon became inseparable and rumors began to fly that
wedding bells were soon on the horizon—but Mirren had a very
different take on that idea.
As Mirren and Hackford were clearly very much in love,
everyone began to wonder when they would finally make it
official and announce they were tying the knot.
But the stunning star, always one to ignore expectations and
live for her own desires, was incredibly open and frank
about not having any desire to get married.
Though the two continued to live together and spend many
happy years as a couple, fans began to accept that they
would simply never marry.
Little did they know what the celeb power couple would
announce many years later.
By this time, Helen Mirren was a bona fide mega star across
all types of media—film, TV, and stage acting. But it was
her next role that would truly come to define her career and
cement her as one of the most respected actresses of her
generation.
That role was the part of Detective Inspector Jane Tennison
on British crime drama mystery series Prime Suspect. The show ran from 1992 to 1996—and won Mirren a whopping
five BAFTA awards during that time.
Despite insisting for so many years that she was not
interested in marriage, and was perfectly happy continuing
to live with her partner without tying the knot, Mirren
surprised fans around the world when she announced she had
wed her long-term love, director Taylor Hackford on New
Year’s Eve of 1997.
Over ten years since first getting together, the couple
finally had decided to make it official. So just what had
changed Mirren’s mind about getting married after all these
years?
Mirren spoke out in her typical no-nonsense way about the
reasons behind her finally deciding to get married.
"We got married in the end because we realized that we were
going to be together forever," she said to AARP magazine. "We got married, ultimately, for legal
reasons more than anything else. Estate planning and other
complicated things like that. And our families, we sensed,
wanted us to be married … I always said I have nothing
against marriage. It just wasn't to my taste, like turnips.
It took me a very long time to come around to acquiring the
taste. I just had to meet the right turnip."
Having been resolute for so many years about not wanting to
get married, Mirren surprised everyone when she and Hackford
finally tied the knot. So, the next question on everyone’s
lips was—were the couple about to welcome a child together?
"I'm just not interested,” she said to Contact Music. “I've no maternal instinct whatsoever. And I don't think
I'm so unusual. I think an awful lot of women don't really
want children but feel they ought to. They think there's
something wrong with them if they don't want to, but it's
not true."
Mirren was keen to stress that though she didn’t have any
desire to have children, it wasn’t because she didn’t love
or appreciate the joy of spending time with young people—it
was simply that motherhood wasn’t for her.
"I'm so happy I don't have children,” she said. “But I do
love children and I've got family, and Taylor has children
that I'm involved with—and with great pleasure—but it's just
not for me."
However, she did reveal that there was one movie moment that
called her decision into question.
Though she remained steadfast in her decision to have
children, Mirren did open up about one moment where she
regretted it.
“When I watched the movie, Parenthood, I sobbed for about 20 minutes,” she revealed to The Sunday Times. “It was about the whole story of being a parent and how
it never stops, even when you're a grandparent. I realized I
would never experience that, and for about 20 minutes, I
sobbed for the loss of that and the fact that I never
experienced it … Then I got over it and I was happy again.”
Despite the media fascination with her personal life, Mirren
continued to focus on her career, winning continued praise
and acclaim for roles in widely lauded movies such as
1996’s The Madness of King George and 2001’s Gosford Park.
Mirren received her second Best Actress award at the Cannes
Film Festival, as well as nominations for both an Academy
Award and a Golden Globe Award—but back in her home country,
she was about to receive a royal recognition of the very
highest order.
By 2003, Helen Mirren had won a string of prestigious acting
awards and nominations. But a huge moment even for her came
when she was recognized by the Queen of England for her
contribution to the world of cinema—being named Dame
Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen
Elizabeth II.
“In England, it's a big deal,” said the newly minted Dame
Helen Mirren. “I do feel it's a great honor. But I had to
think about it quite seriously for a couple of weeks. It
does sort of squash you into the establishment thing. In the
end, my baser feelings got the better of me. I succumbed to
pride.”
After receiving one of her nation’s highest honors from the
Queen of England herself, Dame Helen Mirren then won
another, much more unusual award—but one of the ones she
feels most proud of.
In 2004, British Naturism named her “Naturist of the Year”.
That’s right—Dame Helen Mirren is a nudist!
"Many thanks to British Naturism for this great honor,” she
said in an official statement. “I do believe in naturism and
am my happiest on a nude beach with people of all ages and
races!".
Only Helen Mirren could pull off receiving honors from both
Buckingham Palace and a nudist organization—but her royal
connections were about to be taken to the next level.
Having already been made an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II, Dame
Helen Mirren was pretty familiar with the queen and the
royal family. But her next role would take her royal
reputation to even higher levels—starring as the very same
monarch who had bestowed her highest honor, Mirren appeared
in 2007’s The Queen as Queen Elizabeth II.
For her incredible performance, Mirren finally won the
Academy Award for Best Actress, as well as the Golden Globe.
But her royal related successes in the movie industry
wouldn’t end there.
Hot on the heels of her mega success playing Queen
Elizabeth II, Mirren then turned her attention to
another famous Queen of England with the same name—the
renowned Virgin Queen, aka Elizabeth I.
Mirren starred as the legendary monarch in the HBO
movie Elizabeth I, for which she received great critical acclaim—as well
as winning both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.
Not only beloved by the Queen, but clearly, Helen Mirren
is the absolute queen of playing queens!
But this Hollywood royalty’s next move would surprise
everyone.
Even though Helen Mirren had gained a name for herself
as a respected serious actress, that didn't mean she
wasn't up for taking roles completely outside of her
comfort zone.
That’s why, in 2017, she decided to take a completely
different career move, and join the mega-successful
action-packed car movie franchise Fast & Furious.
And she went about securing this role in a typically
Mirren fashion: "I was at an Oscar party a few years
back,” remembers star and producer Vin Diesel. “And she
came up to me and said, 'I want to be in your
next Fast and the Furious movie. I've been telling everybody in town that I
want to work with you.'"
Even though there was no specific part in the movie
for Mirren to play, Diesel knew that he had to jump
at the chance at having such a beloved and legendary
actress join his franchise.
"There was no role written for her, but it didn't
matter,” Diesel said to Glamor magazine. “We just fell in love with each
other so quickly that I called the writer and the
director to my house."
Sure enough, together the three of them sat down and
created a brand-new role especially for Mirren—she
starred as Magdalene Shaw, the formidable matriarch
of the Shaw family and mother of Deckard, Hattie,
and Owen Shaw.
Vin Diesel and Helen Mirren don't exactly sound
like a match made in heaven, with one being a
classically trained Shakespearean actress and
the other being a shaven-headed beefcake. But in
fact, once they started working together, they
formed an unlikely and beautiful friendship.
"She is one of the few people in my life that I
take every opportunity to celebrate,
acknowledge, and scream to the world how much I
love her," Diesel gushed of her. "When I'm in
her presence, I can't help but see the magic and
innocence of a child. It's such an important
thing for an artist to maintain, and so few can.
It's one of the most beautiful things about
her."
And it’s not just mutual love and
appreciation that Diesel and Mirren found
together in their new and unlikely
friendship. The action man also helped
launched the now 70-something aged star to
take the plunge into social media.
Diesel is the man responsible for setting
Helen Mirren up on Instagram, where she now
cuts a pretty impressive social media
presence.
Though she originally wasn't a huge fan of
the platform, in hindsight Mirren now sees
how it can help emphasize the values she has
held dear throughout the course of her
entire acting career.
Though Mirren’s infamous interview with
Michael Parkinson was all the way back in
the 1970s, she found the video making
headlines once again when it came back to
the spotlight in the wake of the “MeToo”
movement. The power of this movement and the
use of social media to amplify it was, to
Mirren, the culmination of many long years
of struggling for women to be treated fairly
in the industry.
"I've always had a very heightened sense of
fairness. And as I grew to adulthood, I
realized how appallingly unfair the world
was for women," she says. "It's really great
that young women today can look at that
interview and be shocked by it."
Throughout her career, Mirren has had to
deal with people dismissing her talent and
respectability because she is deemed as too
sexy—but she has remained resolute in owning
both aspects of her powerful presence.
"I want roles that reflect women well as a
sex, that don't demean or undercut them, or
make them feel shitty when they watch it,"
she said. "In essence, I'm still hoping to
reflect women onscreen and in the theater
the way I hoped to do in that interview with
Michael Parkinson all those years ago."
From her bold rebuttal of Parkinson in his
shocking interview, to her saucy scenes in
the now-infamous Caligula, or switching from Shakespearean stage
acting to jumping on the Fast & Furious bandwagon, Helen Mirren has never
shied away from following her instinct and
taking roles outside of her comfort zone.
"I made some bold and quite brave moves at
various times in my life,” she admitted.
“Maybe slightly professionally suicidal
moves. But I don't regret any of it. I
always try to make the tapestry of my work
as broad as possible. To me, the most
successful way to conduct my professional
life is to constantly search out new and
different things to do."
There is no denying that Helen
Mirren is a true icon of our times.
In a career spanning a whopping
seven decades, she has moved,
delighted, shocked, and amused us
throughout both her acting roles and
her choices in her personal life.
Having won the triple crown of
acting—an Oscar, Emmy, and Tony
Award—and fans across the world of
all ages, not to mention a damehood,
Mirren is undoubtedly one of the
most accomplished and recognized
actresses of all time.
But despite all this, she retains
her characteristic good humor and
realism—just how does she manage to
stay so grounded despite her star
status?
For Mirren, remaining humble and
down-to-earth is as natural to her
as living and breathing. As well as
constantly following her own desires
and making no apologies for her
presence as a woman, Mirren revealed
that she also doesn't dwell too
heavily on her own ego.
"Patting yourself on the back is not
very productive," she said
to Glamour. "I'm proud of certain
projects—they're all my babies in
one way or another—but I don't dwell
on my past achievements. I dwell on
future achievements."
Well we for one can’t wait to see
what those future achievements will
be. Whatever Helen Mirren does next,
we know she will continue to be an
inspiration to us all.
In more recent years, she’s
become popular from her
drama-filled and entertaining
role on The Real Housewives of
Beverly Hills, but the delightful Denise
Richards has been in the
Hollywood business since the
‘90s and is still going strong.
Time and time again, Richards
has learned that with great
wealth, comes great drama. But
if there’s anything that the
Hollywood superstar has taught
us time and time again, it’s
that with the right attitude,
anything is possible.
While the remarkable Richards is
still as stunning and admired as
she was when she first started
out her acting career, she’s
proven that she’s so much more
than just a pretty face.
Let’s dive in and explore her
adventures from overcoming the
challenges of stardom to being
an inspiringly devoted mother
and philanthropist.
It might be hard to imagine that the
big Hollywood superstar, who’s been
living the lavish life in Beverly
Hills, California is from anywhere
but the west coast, but surprisingly
enough, Denise Richards lived most
of her adolescent life in a small
Midwestern town.
Richards was born in 1971 and grew
up in Downers Grove, Illinois, but
also spent some of her youth in the
small-town of Mokena, Illinois.
With that said, everything was about
to change for the young teenager, as
her Midwestern family was getting
ready to move.
Luckily for Denise, her father
decided that enough was enough when
it came to those harsh Midwestern
winters. And by the time Denise was
15 years old, the family was set on
moving somewhere with more pleasant
climate year-round.
In 1986, the family packed up their
belongings and moved over to the
West coast to settle down in
Oceanside, California. This wasn’t
just a big move for the family,
though. This cross-country move was
a chance for Denise to do something
she never had the opportunity to do
before.
We can’t imagine it was easy for
Richards to transfer schools and
up-root her whole life during one of
the most transitioning years of her
life, but it feels like it was fate
for her to move over to California
during her teen years because soon
enough, the remarkable Richards had
caught the attention of modeling
agents, and was quickly hired on to
work in the professional modeling
world. How exciting!
In no time, her glorious career in
modeling was truly taking off, and
it was clear as day that Richards
had a knack for it. However, as much
as she enjoyed traveling the world
and climbing to the top of the model
chain, deep down she felt like she
was meant for so much more.
Richards felt like she was meant for
more than just walking the runway
and print ads—she
really wanted to be an actress, as
well, and was determined to make her
dreams come true.
“My dad looked up the statistics of
actors in [the Screen Actors Guild]
and saw how many don’t work … So, I
told him, ‘I promise I’m going to be
one of the ones who work,’” Richards
shared in interview with Washington Post.
And within just a couple of years,
the ambitious 19-year-old Denise had
excitedly landed her very first
acting role in an episode of the TV
series Life Goes On!
When the ‘90s rolled around,
Richards focused on making it big in
Hollywood, and nothing was going to
stop her. Her Hollywood career
ignited with several guest-starring
roles in all sorts of famous shows
like Beverly Hill, 90201, Doogie Howser, M.D., Married with Children, and Seinfeld.
Even if she only appeared in only
one episode in each of these famous
shows, that’s still pretty
impressive for her first couple of
years!
And pretty soon, she was about to
catch her big break on the big
screen.
After a few years of working hard
and focusing on getting bigger roles
in movies, the talented and eager
actress finally got her big break
starring in multiple films. Her
first breakthrough star role in a
major film was in the 1997 sci-fi
action-adventure comedy, Starship Troopers.
Just a year later, in 1998, she got
the saucy lead role alongside Kevin
Bacon, Neve Campbell, and Matt
Dillon in the crime-drama
film Wild Things.
And a year after that, she got
another major role in the cult
comedy Drop Dead Gorgeous, starring Kirsten Dunst, Amy
Adams, and Ellen Barkin. How
exciting!
Starting out as a model, there’s no
doubt that she was glorified for her
stunning and sensational looks.
However, it was clear that the
dynamic Denise was more than just a
pretty face and was meant for the
movies. And she proved it quickly,
by playing diverse roles in all
different kinds of genres.
Still though, since her major roles
were typically of the beautiful,
ditsy blond, she had to fight that
stereotype and constantly in need to
prove she's more than that in real
life. But she never let that stop
her.
Especially since Denise was such a
fierce femme, she made sure that
off-screen, people were aware that
she had more to her than just her
looks. She learned to spin it all
with her endearing and charming
attitude, and always kept a positive
attitude about everything.
No matter how much pep you have to
your step, though, it doesn’t always
mean that dealing with harsh
critique is easy. In fact, there was
one particular role in the late ‘90s
that she really struggled with after
its release.
Richards’ next role was an honorable
one. She was featured in
1999’s The World is Not Enough as a Bond Girl. And while
this is one of her most popular
roles throughout her career, upon
its release, the feedback from the
media and public wasn’t exactly the
most positive.
Interestingly enough though, the
feedback wasn’t really about her
acting skills, but more about the
character itself, and the saucy
styled attire.
“I was so crushed … But I was
thinking I’m a Bond girl playing a
scientist. Would they want me
wearing a lab coat and dressed
conservatively? It’s tongue in
cheek,” Richards confessed
to Washington Post.
There’s always a difference between
constructive criticism and negative
feedback—and as an artist, no matter
what medium you specialize in, it’s
crucial to learn how to deal with
any type of criticism.
So how exactly has Denise Richards
coped with these tough reviews from
the public over the years? “I try to
block out a lot of stuff, but I’m
also human. I’ve had to develop a
very, very thick skin over the
years,” she revealed.
But alas, coping with the harsh
reality of Hollywood reviews is just
part of the hardships the savvy
superstar has dealt with over the
years.
In 2001, Denise Richards landed
another lead role in the
rom-com Good Advice, starring alongside Charlie Sheen
and Angie Harmon.
It was on that set that Richards and
Sheen first met, portraying romantic
partners in the movie. But little
did they know that this was just the
beginning of their story together.
After shooting the movie, Richards
made an appearance in Spin City, starring Michael J. Fox and
Charlie Sheen. And as fate would
have it, she landed a temporary role
appearing in four episodes as one of
Sheen’s former love interests.
That’s when sparks started flying
between the two.
After the Richards and Sheen played
each other’s love interests a couple
of times on-screen, the two
hardworking Hollywood bees ended up
falling in love off-screen.
By 2002, the two tied the knot, and
two years after that, they welcomed
their first daughter together into
the world, Sam Sheen.
The new formed, loving family of
three even appeared together on TV
in Two and a Half Men.
But unfortunately, behind the
scenes, things weren’t always so
smooth-sailing between Richards and
Sheen.
Although on the surface it might’ve
seemed like everything was okay,
every family has its own struggles
and hardships that they keep behind
closed doors. And for celebrity
couples, keeping things behind
closed doors in general is
a-whole-nother stressful challenge,
all on its own.
By 2005, the couple had both good
news and bad news to share with the
world. Firstly, they were expecting
their second daughter. Which
normally would be extremely
exciting, however, the bad news was
that they were having some marital
troubles and were looking into
separating altogether.
Even though Sheen was sober while he
and Richards wed in 2002, it seemed
like he stumbled back down his own
dangerous rabbit hole, which heavily
affected his behavior towards his
family.
The couple released an official
statement to People in March 2005, stating: “We
are deeply saddened by the recent
events and out of our love and
concern for our daughter Sam, our
unborn child and each other, we ask
that you respect our privacy during
this difficult time.”
The once young-and-in-love couple
tried to work things out over the
next year, but alas, it didn’t seem
like their issues could be resolved,
and they needed to do what would be
best for their children.
“I've always wanted to keep
things good and peaceful from
day one, but it takes two
people,” Richards shared during
her radio interview
with Sway’s Universe in 2019.
There’s no doubt that Charlie
Sheen is a talented man, but
he’s also known for being quite
the trouble-maker. No matter how
difficult it got, Denise always
tried to keep things as amicable
as she could before, during, and
after her split with Sheen—not
just for herself, but for the
sake of their beautiful
daughters.
It was a long and bumpy road
filled with tabloid rumors and
court orders, but eventually,
Denise’s down-to-earth and regal
demeanor pushed through the dark
times.
When asked about what
co-parenting has been like all
these years, Richards openly
shared and said that, “I've
always maintained wanting to
keep the peace because our
daughters didn't deserve …
anything negative. And I don't
think kids should be privy to
anything going on with parents
that are going through a
divorce, in my opinion. I think
you got to keep things so they
don't ever feel like they're in
the middle of anything, or feel
insecure. So, I always wanted
them to know that I love their
dad, and you know, always here
for them, and supportive of
their relationship with him.”
Needless to say, the second half
of the 2000s were quite
difficult years for Richards.
Not only did she have to cope
with the hardships of her
marital break-up, but she also
lost her mother in 2007.
However, it was after this
heart-breaking loss that she
decided to do things a little
bit differently. Richards took
an interest in alternative
medicine and health treatments
for herself, and started to
discover the world of healing
outside of the western medicine
world. Little did she know that
this path would lead her to
something incredible about a
decade later.
In 2012, there were rumors
flying around that the saucy
Charlie Sheen and ravishing
Denise Richards were back
together. Why? Because they
took a trip to Mexico as a
family.
However, those rumors were
quickly put to rest as
Richards shared
with Huffington Post, "We've actually become
like brother and sister, we
really have. Nothing more
than that…We've become very,
very good friends."
Richards might be known for
her saucy characters in her
films, but her role as a
caring and strong mother
keeps on inspiring the
world.
The daring Denise Richards
has proven that she’s got a
lot of talent when it comes
to modeling and parenting.
However, time and time
again, she’s also shown us
just how incredible of a
mother and co-parent she is
by being the bigger person.
Richards further explained
to Huffington Post, “The stuff between the
couple, if you're divorced,
it's no longer about you
anymore. You have to be a
bigger person and make it
about the kids, so that's
what we are doing. [Charlie
Sheen] is who is he, I can't
change him, so I've accepted
him for who he is.”
Time and time again,
Richards has shown us how to
be the inspiring bigger
person. And she’s not the
only one who’s been amicable
with Sheen, though.
In 2016, a decade after
Richards separation and the
start of her health journey,
her life was about to change
in ways she never would’ve
imagined.
Upon a visit at Quantum 360,
a state-of-the-art holistic
healing center in Malibu,
Richards met the founder of
the center, Aaron Cameron
a.k.a. Aaron Phypers. Their
chemistry was magnetic on
levels neither of them
could’ve imagined, and they
instantly fell for each
other.
After one magical year of
dating, the two lovebirds
decided it was time to take
things to the next level.
The two supposedly got
engaged in January 2018,
however they did their best
to keep everything on the
down-low and away from the
media.
With that said, though, both
Denise and Aaron felt the
need to tell one specific
person about this
significant news.
“Aaron called Charlie when
we were getting married … He
wanted him to hear it from
him, and you know, out of
respect for him, and our
daughters, knowing that he
was gonna be the stepfather.
And they had a really great
conversation, and it was
good,” Richards revealed
during her interview
with Sway’s Universe.
It's one thing to have to
deal with all of the media
and tabloids talking about
your career and performance.
But once you have the whole
world taking a look at your
behind-the-scenes life, it’s
a completely different ball
game.
In 2019, the remarkable
Richards joined the 9th
season of one of America’s
favorite drama-filled
reality TV shows, The Real Housewives of
Beverly Hills, and provided a teste of
what her life is really
like. Little did she know
just how real the TV show
actually is.
You’ve probably all asked
yourselves, how real is what
we see on these reality TV
shows that we can’t get
enough of?
Richards light-heartedly
confessed during a radio
interview with Sway’s Universe in 2019 that she
“thought it was gonna be
softly scripted to be honest
with you, because I thought,
‘There's no way they fight
all the time like this in
real life.’ But they do, and
so it's not scripted at
all.”
And while she always stayed
authentic and true to
herself while she was on
camera, it was still hard
for her to get used to all
of the drama.
Even though she
guest-starred in Season
5, it’s safe to say that
Denise Richards wasn’t
truly sure what she was
signing up for when she
joined in on The Real
Housewives fun and drama on
season 9. But what was
one of the biggest
things she needed to get
used to?
Richards humorously
revealed to Sway’s Universe, “the weird thing for
me to get used to was us
going to restaurants. It
was unscripted, you know
there's extras and
people involved in the
project whatever. But
this, there's real
people there, watching
us, and videotaping,
and, you know, and it's
a hard thing to get used
to—to block it out and
think, ‘Okay now
everyone's fighting, and
other people are having
dinner, while everyone’s
arguing at the table.’”
We’ve covered if things
are scripted or not, but
how real are the actual
relationships on the
show?
Mike Muse of Sway’s Universe asked Denise if
the ladies ever hang out
in between seasons, or
if they’re even allowed
to.
Denise revealed, “they
don't want us to, but if
we want to we can, you
know? But they would
prefer to wait until,
you know, to put it on
film … I've really
become friends with
them, too, [we] hang out
and stay in touch, even
though we're not
filming.”
How interesting!
Unfortunately, Richards'
partner, Aaron hasn’t
always had the best
interactions with people
involved in his wife’s
life.
For anyone who
follows RHOBH, then you know about
the iconic and dramatic
BBQ show-down between
Aaron and some of the
other cast members. For
those of you who don’t
follow though, basically
Aaron got upset that
some of the cast members
bring up inappropriate
subjects while their
children are around, and
confronted them about it
at the BBQ.
But this is Real Housewives after all, so any
form of confrontation is
certain to get heated
and escalate. Right?
It’s safe to say
that the whole
throw-down left a
bad taste in many of
the cast-members
mouths, including
Denise and Aaron.
However, it was what
happened after the
argument that made
headlines.
After the discussion
turned into a heated
argument, Denise and
Aaron decided to
leave the party
early. While they
were walking out,
Denise repeatedly
asked Aaron to stop
talking for now.
"Don't say a word.
We're on camera,"
she claimed on the
show.
However, in the heat
of the moment, Aaron
supposedly responded
back to her by
telling her to stop
telling him what to
do or he would
"crush” her arm.
So what did Denise
have to say about
this whole incident?
Richards has
reassured that
the relationship
between her and
Aaron is nothing
but great, and
that he would
never actually
do anything to
hurt her. In
fact, she
jokingly
mentioned
to People that he’s
“afraid of her”.
Richards also
emotionally
expressed
to The
Washington
Post, “He’s my best
friend. He’s my
lover. He’s my
confidant … I
feel that we
bring out the
best in each
other. We are
definitely both
very strong
personalities,
so, obviously
we’ll have
moments, but we
respect each
other’s
opinions.” How
sweet!
The whole
reason for
why things
got heated
during the
BBQ episode,
was because
of the
debate on
what’s okay
and not okay
to bring up
when their
children are
around while
filming. And
the
interviewers
at Sway’s
Universe were
curious
about how
much say the
children
have in
being on the
show or not
at all.
“I've told
[my kids],
‘If they
want to be
on, they
can. If they
don't,
there's no
pressure.’
So, the
times that
they want to
film,
they're
there, if
not, I get
it … But
they like
that their
friends and
their
friend’s
parents also
watch the
show,”
Denise
openly
shared.
The
delightful
Denise
has been
in
multiple
movies,
all
sorts of
fascinating
TV
shows,
and
recently
on
reality
TV.
So as a
high-profile
celebrity,
she
knows
all the
up and
downs,
rough
tumbles
and
falls
that the
business
comes
with.
But what
does she
think
about
having
her own
children
following
in her
same
path if
they
wanted
to be
actors
as well?
“I
definitely
wouldn't
want to
stop
them,
because
I
wouldn't
want my
parents
to stop
me … I
want
them to
follow
their
passion
and
dreams,”
she
whole-heartedly
revealed
on Sway’s
Universe.
Richards
stuck
around
for
a
second
season
of RHOBH,
as
she
seemed
to
have
quickly
found
her
place
with
all
of
the
drama—but
that
doesn’t
mean
that
she
actually
enjoyed
it
all.
But
even
if
there
were
some
salty
times
during
her
two
seasons
so
far,
did
she
regret
anything?
“I
actually
had
so
much
fun
my
first
season,
and
I
formed
genuine
friendships.
This
season
was
very
different,
but
I
would
never
say
I
regret
anything
… I
just
roll
with
the
punches,”
she
confessed
to The
Washington
Post in
2020.
What
an
inspiring
way
to
go
about
it
all!
During
her
first
season,
Richards
felt
like
she
was
still
getting
to
know
everyone
and
how
the
show
works.
However,
after
being
the
center
of
a
lot
of
the
drama
in
the
10th
season,
there’s
been
a
lot
of
back
and
forth
thoughts
on
whether
the
49-year-old
Richards
wanted
to
continue
on
for
a
third
season
with
the
show
or
not.
So,
are
the
rumors
true?
Is
she
actually
leaving?
In
a
September
2020
interview,
Richards
revealed
her
true
thoughts
about
returning
for
a
third
season.
In
September,
2020,
Richards
announced
she
will
not
be
returning
for
a
3rd
season
of
RHOBH
due
to
the
season
10
drama
involving
Brandi
Glanville.
“I
had
a
great
first
season.
The
second
season
was
challenging
…
I
just
thought
it
was
the
right
time
for
me
to
go
and
to
just
keep
focusing
on
the
other
projects
that
I
have.
I
had
a
great
time.
I
will
always
be
a
fan
and
I
will
continue
to
support
the
show,”
Richards
confessed
to
the The
Real.
However,
she’s
also
stated
to
other
sources
that
even
if
she’s
focusing
on
other
ventures,
she’s
not
ruling
out
reality
TV
forever.
Speaking
of
chasing
a
career
in
Hollywood,
what
does
Denise
have
planned
for
the
future?
She
revealed
that
she’s,
“a
family
girl.
I
love
being
with
my
family.”
She
also
mentioned
that
she
does
dabble
in
the
kitchen
and
can
cook,
but
when
it
comes
to
her
desires
for
work,
she’s
very
passionate
about
acting.
In
fact,
on
her
IMDB
page,
there
are
multiple
projects
that
she’s
got
lined
up
to
come
out
soon,
including
lead
roles
on
the
TV
series The
Bold
and
the
Beautiful and Paper
Empire.
The
highly-admired
and
talented
TV
and
movie
star
loves
acting
so
much,
however,
one
of
the
favorite
gigs
she
landed
was
one
of
her
earliest
films.
“Starship
Troopers,
I
had
the
one
of
the
best
times
doing
that
movie
…
We
filmed
for
six
months,
we
were
all
at
the
same
level
in
our
career,
no
one
knew
who
we
were,
and
we
were
just
so
excited
to
be
there,
and
we
became
really
good
friends
with
each
other.
So,
that's
the
stuff
that
I
really
remember
doing
more
than
the
movies,”
she
excitedly
expressed
to Sway’s
Universe.
In
2019,
Richards
starred
in
a
TV
film, The
Secret
Life
of
Cheerleaders,
in
which
she
plays
a
mother
who
encourages
her
daughter
to
join
the
cheerleading
squad
in
her
school.
During
her
high
school
years,
Richards
also
dabbled
as
a
cheerleader,
but
her
experience
wasn’t
always
great.
While
discussing
the
film
she
shared,
“I
was
a
cheerleader
in
high
school,
and
there
were
always
catty
girls
around,
it's
nothing
new.”
“'There
was
pressure
to
look
a
certain
way
and
have
a
certain
body.
Everyone
felt
it,”
she
added.
As
we’ve
mentioned
earlier,
Richards
has
revealed
that
she’s
taking
a
step
back
from The
Real
Housewives
of
Beverly
Hills so
that
she
can
focus
on
her
other
projects.
Clearly,
she’s
got
her
hands
full
with
her
Hollywood
work,
but
that’s
just
part
of
what
she’s
been
up
to.
Not
only
is
Denise
a
jaw-dropping
model,
incredible
actress,
and
above
all
else,
a
devoted
mother,
but
she’s
also
quite
the
philanthropist.
In
fact,
she’s
specifically
volunteered
and
donated
to
all
sorts
of
causes
related
to
helping
both
children
in
need,
as
well
as,
animals
in
need.
How
heart-warming!
In
2011,
Denise
adopted
a
precious
baby
girl,
Eloise
Joni
Richards.
Unfortunately,
when
Eloise
was
5
years
old,
she
was
diagnosed
with
a
neurological
condition,
and
isn’t
able
to
use
her
verbal
skills.
But
this
little
challenge
isn’t
going
to
stop
Denise
and
Aaron
from
trying
to
give
Eloise
the
best
list
that
they
can.
Not
only
have
they
been
learning
and
teaching
her
sign
language,
they’re
also
trying
to
get
a
guide
dog
to
help
her
around.
How
precious!
Both
Denise
and
Aaron
are
dedicated
to
making
the
world
a
better
place,
and
they’re
actually
super
involved
in
helping
out
with
a
very
similar
cause.
It’s
clear
that
the
two
of
them
both
love
kids
and
animals,
which
is
why
not
only
are
the
two
of
them
in
the
process
of
creating
the
Quantum
Reach
Foundation
for
animals
and
children,
but
they
are
actually
planning
on
opening
up
their
own
animal
sanctuary
together.
How
sweet!
But
you’ll
never
believe
where
the
big-time
Beverly
Hills
couple
are
actually
planning
on
opening
the
sanctuary.
The
two
of
them
might
be
living
the
big-city
life
in
California,
and
Aaron
himself
might’ve
been
born
in
L.A.,
but
Richards’
was
born
and
raised
in
a
small-town
over
in
Illinois.
So,
while
it
might
come
as
a
bit
of
a
surprise,
it
seems
like
the
happy
couple
have
decided
to
take
some
time
away
from
the
hustle
and
bustle
of
the
big
city,
and
have
started
searching
for
properties
over
in
the
mountainous
“Treasure
State”
of
Montana
for
their
animal
sanctuary.
Who
would’ve
thought
that
the
Beverly
Hills
couple
would
consider
moving
over
to
the
Big
Sky
Country?
If
there’s
anything
Denise
Richards
has
taught
us
though,
it’s
that
with
the
right
attitude,
anything
is
possible!
Thank
You!
for
watching....
