Carey Mulligan 'Masterful' in 'Maestro' after past negativity due to her looks

Mulligan has received nothing but praise from the critics after the release of 'Maestro', the biopic about composer Leonard Bernstein. Directed by and starring Bradley Cooper, the film brings out the best in the actress who has been vocal and transparent regarding her Hollywood experiences.

'Vogue' says that Carey Mulligan 'reaches a whole other level' in some parts of the new film. Many critics are citing this as her best performance to date. We look at her journey to current success which, behind the scenes, has been tarnished with negativity and rejection.

Carey Hannah Mulligan was born 28 May 1985. She was the leading actress in 'Promising Young Woman,' one of the best and most awarded films of 2021. Taking the movie industry by storm, it put Carey Mulligan in the spotlight again, which seems to happen every few years.

In 'Promising Young Woman,' Mulligan played Cassie, a woman who finds a less-than-conventional way of dealing with her grief. She seeks to right the wrongs haunting her since her best friend was raped in college. The dark comedy was written and directed by Emerald Fennell.

'Promising Young Woman' made history by getting no less than five Oscar nominations including picture, editing, director and, of course, Best Actress for Carey Mulligan. She also won the Critic’s choice award for her role as Cassie and was nominated, also in the best actress categories, by the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Golden Globes. Could she be in the same tier for her performance in 'Maestro'?

Photo: Twitter, now X

Carey Mulligan told the Irish Times that she looks for roles of "women that feel real. I think real-life women are so under-represented in cinema, especially in the last 20 years or so... There’s still a scarcity of female roles that I look at on-screen and think: oh yeah, I feel like I know what you’re going through; you’re not perfect and you’re not unwaveringly supporting your genius husband. There’s not many of those parts around."

Variety strongly hinted that the role of Cassie had been miscast and weren’t too fond of the film itself. They wrote, “Margot Robbie is a producer here, and one can (perhaps too easily) imagine the role might once have been intended for her. Whereas with this star, Cassie wears her pickup-bait gear like bad drag; even her long blond hair feels like a put-on.”

“I read the Variety review, because I’m a weak person,” Mulligan said in an interview. “And I took issue with it.” Despite all the positive feedback the film (and Carey) had received, there were still words that could hurt the actress.

“It felt like it was basically saying that I wasn’t hot enough to pull off this kind of ruse… It drove me so crazy. I was like, ‘Really? For this film, you’re going to write something that is so transparent? Now? In 2020?’ I just couldn’t believe it.”

Maybe Carey Mulligan got this criticism because she's better known for her roles in period dramas. She played Kitty in 'Pride and Prejudice' alongside Keira Knightley and Judi Dench; she also had roles in 'Northanger Abbey' and 'Bleak house.' It seems 'Maestro' was the film that was needed to show the real versatility of the actress.

A little closer to the present, but still a period drama, was the Netflix movie 'The Dig', co-starring Ralph Fiennes. She played Edith Pretty, an upper-middle class widow in the 1930s who hires a local archaeologist to excavate the burial site Sutton Hoo. Edith has a weak health but a strong will and manages to work with the local excavator despite attempts from university archaeologists and the British museum to take over.

Photo: Netflix

"I used to have a typecast thing," she tells the Irish Times, "and I fought my age and baby face. When I was younger, I used to play much younger than myself all the time and that got a little bit tiring. I don't think recently I've played a particular type.”

One of Carey’s most meaningful acting moments was her role in 'Doctor Who.' The TV show was iconic and she was thrilled to be offered the part of Sally Sparrow, who fronted the episode ‘Blink’ trying to unravel the mystery of the weeping angels.

Photo: BBC

Perhaps most people recognise Carey Mulligan for her role in ‘The Great Gatsby’, which came out in May 2013. She played Daisy opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and created a warm, yet troubled character. The sweet voice she adopted for Daisy is a stark contrast to her character in 'Promising Young Woman' - had she not proven her talent by then?.

An all-star cast leads the film, 'Suffragette,' a 2015 British historical drama that was the first film ever to be shot inside the houses of Parliament. Mulligan plays the lead, Maud, who is caught up in a suffragette protest that ultimately leads to the movement giving women the right to vote and rights over their own children.

Photo: 20th Century Studios

Carey Mulligan recalls that her love for acting first came about when she was at her school Woldingham where, in her final year, she took part in their production of 'Sweet Charity'.

When Carey was 19 she first stepped out onto the professional stage in the play 'Forty Winks' at the Royal Court Theatre in London. Carey was born in London, in Westminster, in 1985.

In an interview at the Sundance Film Festival she explained that the first actor she met was Julian Fellowes, who came to talk at her school. After the talk, she went to speak to him, and he was surprised by her strength and desire at such a young age. He introduced her to casting director Jina Jay’s assistant who subsequently gave Carey her first film role in ‘Pride and Prejudice.’

Carey Mulligan is known for keeping quiet about her personal life and keeping what should be behind closed doors, well away from the spotlight. We do know, however that she is married to Marcus Mumford, the lead singer of Mumford and Sons. They were pen pals as children after meeting at a church camp.

Simon Hattenstone from The Guardian wanted to know more and in an interview pressed Carey on the subject of her meeting her husband. He encouraged the actress to spill details, “I’m interested that you were pen pals after first meeting as youngsters.” Carey replied, “I know, but I don't want people to be interested in that. And your interest in it will inspire other people's interest in it, and more of my life I don't want people to know about will become exposed.”

Hattenstone continued to try and obtain details from the ‘Promising Young Woman’ star: “Has your marriage to Marcus made you more secure?” he asked. She finally revealed, “Yes, I think I'm more settled and more secure than I've probably ever been, and more confident and excited about the work choices that I make."

"So I feel my job isn't to be a dancing monkey and entertain people on television," she continued in The Guardian. "It's to promote a piece of work I'm proud of. So I can't really fail if I stick to honestly representing my work and trying to avoid talking very much about myself. Which I seem to have done loads of today."

Carey Mulligan lives on a farm house in Devon with her husband and two children, Evelyn and Wilfred. This is no normal Farm house, however, and the huge farm and plot is currently valued at around 2 million!

Of course, her life and focus have changed since having children. She no longer misses the single life. In fact, one of her favourite things to do these days is cover the children’s toys with water in a tray, put them in the freezer overnight, and then have the kids try to save their toys from the ice block. She said, "God, we haven’t been in a bar in a really long time. And I’m very glad of that.”

Quarantine was a time for many to try something new, get creative or just generally have a rest. Not for Carey. Resting was difficult with two young children and she struggled trying to learn anything new. She said, "I got knitting stuff at the beginning of lockdown and I tried it once, and was like ... I can't do this. I can't learn anything. I'm just going to keep the children entertained and then go to bed and do it again.”

Carey Mulligan is a known face who spreads awareness about Alzheimer's. Her grandmother is known to be suffering from the disease, and for this reason it is an issue very close to Carey’s heart. She was appointed as the brand ambassador of ‘Alzheimer's Society’ in 2012. Her other charity work includes raising awareness for sex trafficking by taking part in the Safe Project and being the brand ambassador for the War Child charity.

It seems Carey Mulligan is an actress who focuses on the job, trying to find the right roles that will challenge her and keep her art alive. Secure in her very ‘private’ private life, Carey is a strong-willed woman who has come far but still has much she would like to accomplish.