Helen Mirren reveals her acting mantra as she accepts Life Achievement SAG Award

Helen Mirren shared her two mottos for success as she accepted the Life Achievement honour at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards on Sunday.

After receiving introductions from Cate Blanchett and Kate Winslet, the veteran British actress took to the stage at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, to accept the honour in recognition of her contributions to cinema.

Opening her speech, Mirren credited her two mantras for her long, successful career.

“Lifetime achievement, sounds so grand, but I suppose I’m still alive, so by that measure I’m eligible,” she joked. “But honestly, any achievement that I’ve succeeded in is the result of my mantra which is basically, ‘Be on time and don’t be an a*s’. Thank you S-A-G so much for this. I hate to say the word ‘sag’ at my age.”

The 76-year-old continued her speech by confessing that she didn’t feel worthy of the honour, despite being the most decorated recipient with a total of 13 SAG nominations and five wins to her name.

“I’m simultaneously enormously proud, and yet I’m riven with the understanding that I absolutely do not deserve this,” she said. “And there is this conflict that I believe you all understand: insecurity versus ego. That cocktail that I believe most actors sip of the evening as they contemplate the wonderful gift they received the moment they decided to become an actor.

“It is you, you: actors, that I want to thank. For your wit, and your humour, all the giggles, all the laughter – I’ve laughed my whole life, honestly. Your perception, your emotional generosity, your great intelligence and your incredible energy, and your helpless dedication to our chosen profession.”

Recent recipients of the honour include Robert De Niro, Alan Alda, Morgan Freeman, Lily Tomlin, and Carol Burnett.