Dame Helen Mirren: Queen of the Brothel and the Movie Set

Dame Helen Mirren took her role as brothel madam on "Love Ranch" very seriously, even overseeing actress disputes when the cameras stopped rolling.

Taryn Manning, who plays one of the working girls at the Mustang Ranch in the film, recalls that Mirren took it upon herself to keep the peace on the set.

"She really was the madam," Manning tells PopcornBiz.

"There was a lot of cattiness on the set, believe it or not, with all the females," says Manning. "There were a couple of inexperienced actresses that couldn't tell the difference between acting and real life. She helped diffuse all that stuff."

Manning spoke from the DJ booth of the Haute and Bothered Season 2 Launch Party.

Mirren had even greater reason to have a personal stake in the film which depicts the early days of the first legalized brother in Nevada. Her husband Taylor Hackford directed the film, which is due out in June.

"We all looked up to her and didn't want to disappoint her," says Manning. "So we all minded our Ps and Qs. She had an amazing vibe."

Mirren, who spent an evening in a real Nevada brothel to prepare for the part, told me earlier this year that there were similarities between this role and her Academy Award-winning role in "The Queen."

"The madam of the brothel is very much the queen bee of her world," she said.  Long may she reign.

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