Mirren's Israel Commentary
Helen Mirren Addresses London Zionist Slur Harassment, Clarifies Nuanced Israel Stance
Key Points
The Metropolitan Police said the resurfaced footage was being treated as a potential hate crime, and the clip shows Mirren and her husband, Taylor Hackford, being filmed in London in November 2025—before police later closed the matter without a formal investigation after speaking with them.
In the video, the man’s abuse was more specific than “evil Zionist b****,” including claims such as: “You said Israel should last forever because of the Holocaust” and “she was very happy the Palestinians' houses were gone,” before shouting “And [Hackford] as well, f*** you as well”; Hackford then told the filmer to “f*** off” and urged him to leave them alone.
Mirren described a long-running personal connection to Israel: she first visited in 1967 to work at Kibbutz Ha’on “at the foot of the Golan Heights.”
Asked why the attacker targeted her, Mirren suggested he may have formed his view online, saying: “I don’t know whether he read things on the Internet or thought he read something which he hadn’t read.”
The Guardian reported that Mirren has previously backed Israel publicly—co-signing a letter alongside Gene Simmons and Boy George backing Israel’s participation in Eurovision.
Dame Helen Mirren has broken her silence on a viral street harassment incident in London, saying the man who screamed "evil Zionist b****" at her likely targeted her "by mistake" after reading things online. Speaking at the Taormina Film Festival in Sicily on June 11, 2026, the 80-year-old Oscar winner said her attacker was possibly "over passionate" or "mentally not quite stable." JTA reported her remarks were her first public statement since the footage went viral.
The Metropolitan Police initially reviewed the November 2025 incident as a potential hate crime after footage resurfaced in late May 2026. But after officers spoke with Mirren and her husband, director Taylor Hackford, the case was closed without a formal investigation on June 8, GB News confirmed.
What the Man Actually Said on That London Street
The confrontation happened at night in Tower Hill, East London in November 2025. The man filmed the encounter but the footage stayed private for months. An anonymous account called "Anti-Fascist Action UK" uploaded the clip on May 28, 2026, and it spread quickly online, according to NY Post.
The abuse went further than the headline slur. The man accused Mirren of saying "Israel should last forever because of the Holocaust" and claimed she was "very happy the Palestinians' houses were gone." He then shouted at Hackford too. Hackford told him to "f*** off" and urged him to leave them alone, NY Post reported.
Mirren Blames the Internet, Not a Political Agenda
At Taormina, Mirren said she believed the man acted on bad information. "I don't know whether he read things on the Internet or thought he read something which he hadn't read," she said, per JTA. She suggested he may have confused or misread her past statements about Israel.
Mirren declined to press charges or cooperate with a formal police inquiry. The Met had said it was working to "tackle hate crimes of all types" and made over 90 hate crime arrests since March 2026. But without the victims' support, the case was dropped, AOL News noted.
Mirren's Decades-Long Bond With Israel — and Her Sharp Criticism of It
Mirren's ties to Israel go back to 1967, when she volunteered at Kibbutz Ha'on at the foot of the Golan Heights. She later starred as Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir in the 2023 film Golda. She also co-signed a letter with Gene Simmons and Boy George backing Israel's place in the Eurovision Song Contest, The Guardian reported.
But at Taormina, she did not hold back on Israel's current conduct. She said "crimes against humanity" are being committed against Palestinians and questioned how people who had suffered violence could repeat it on others. She added that she still has "great friends" in Israel and praised its artistic and intellectual community, according to JTA.
Mirren Also Defends Tom Hardy Amid MobLand Rumors
The Taormina appearance covered more than the harassment incident. Mirren also pushed back on reports of tension with her MobLand co-star Tom Hardy. "I love Tom," she said. "My support of him is genuine and heartfelt." The Paramount+ series had been hit by rumors of Hardy's firing and on-set friction, per Head Topics.
Mirren said she hopes the show can continue into a third season despite what she called recent "upheaval." MobLand was renewed for Season 2 in June 2025. Her public support for Hardy is expected to ease concerns about the show's future, according to Head Topics.
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