Ian McKellen is being royally honest.
The 85-year-old didn’t hold back regarding his opinions on the royal family, including when he met Queen Elizabeth II in 2008.
The “Lord of the Rings” star spoke to the Times of London on Friday and claimed their meeting wasn’t his cup of tea.
McKellen shared that “on the few occasions I met her she was quite rude.”
“When I received a medal for acting, she said, ‘You’ve been doing this for an awfully long time.’ I said, ‘Well, not as long as you,’” he told the outlet. “I got a royal smile for that, but then she said, ‘Does anyone still actually go to the theatre?’ That’s bloody rude when you’re giving someone a medal for acting. It meant, ‘Does anyone care a f – – k about you because I don’t. Now off you go!’”
The Times pointed out that McKellen acted out his encounter with the late monarch, pretending to shake the interviewer’s hand but shoving the reporter away with “some force” at the last minute.
“That was her handshake and it meant, ‘Go! Go!’” he quipped.
McKellen also believed that the queen was “quite mad” toward the end of her life. The royal highness passed away at age 96 in 2022.
Queen Elizabeth II wasn’t the only family member “The Good Liar” actor had strong opinions about.
McKellen shared that King Charles III is “most definitely on Harry’s side” amid the Duke of Sussex’s estranged relationship with his father and brother, Prince William.
“Imagine being born into the royal family. I’ve been in public life a bit, but these people are in prison. They can’t do anything normal,” he said. “Can you imagine having to be nice to everyone you talk to?”
“Hats off to anyone who manages to stay sane in that world. Like the Duke of Edinburgh [Prince Philip] managed to do, although even he was deeply, deeply eccentric and I suspect, deeply unhappy,” exclaimed McKellen. “Same with the present king. He sort of survives, but he is clearly damaged.”
Prince Harry, 39, left the royal family with his wife, Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, and their two kids, Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3, and settled in Montecito, California, in 2023.
“As for Harry, he’s probably not bright enough or doesn’t have the right friends to really help himself,” McKellen continued. “Mind you, he had the pick of all the pretty women in the world. I hope he’s got the right one.”
The English actor’s latest interview comes a month after he revealed that wearing a fat suit protected him after he fell off the stage during a West End performance in June.
McKellen told Saga Magazine that since the incident, where he chipped a vertebra and fractured his wrist, he hasn’t wanted to leave his house.
“My chipped vertebrae and fractured wrist are not yet healed,” the “X2” star revealed. “I avoid going out because I’m nervous someone might bump into me, and I’ve been dealing with agonizing pain in my shoulders due to the jolt my body took. But the fat suit I wore for Falstaff saved my ribs and other joints, so I consider myself lucky.”
Despite McKellen’s “lucky escape,” he had to take time to recover from the trauma of his accident.
“I’ve relived that fall countless times. It was horrible,” he recalled. “I thought it was the end of something. It was very upsetting. The end didn’t mean my death, but it felt like the end of my participation in the play.”
McKellen has continued to remind himself that regardless of his injuries, he’s not too old to act.
“It was just a bloody accident,” McKellen said. “I didn’t lose consciousness, I hadn’t been dizzy, but I’ve not been able to return to the stage, and they’ve continued without me.”
The “Critic” star was portraying John Falstaff in “Player Kings,” a production of William Shakespeare’s “Henry IV, Parts One and Two,” at the Noel Coward Theatre in London when he fell during a battle scene.
McKellen tripped on a newspaper and then caught his foot in the chair, which caused him to tumble into the front row. He “cried out in pain” and was “calling for help” when he fell off the stage.
McKellen spent three days in the hospital after the fall and was forced to leave the show early. He is currently recovering while in a neck brace.
The “Mr. Holmes” alum also confirmed that his character has continued to be played by his understudy David Semark.
“Just two weeks after my accident onstage I want to assure my many well-wishers that the injuries (to wrist and neck) are on the mend,” McKellen shared via X (formerly Twitter) on July 2. “My doctors promise a complete recovery – but only if I avoid work over the next few weeks.”
“Any actor will say that missing a performance feels somewhat shameful, even when he is not to blame. None of us ever wants to let down our audience. But Robert Icke’s masterful production remains intact. His mis en scene is compelling throughout and his actors, led by Toheeb Jimho and Richard Coyle as Prince Hal and his father, remain on top form. Go see for yourself!”
