Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy has expressed his sadness over Helen McCrory’s absence from the final season of the BBC drama, after she was unable to film her planned scenes due to Covid.
The star, who was married to fellow actor Damien Lewis, died in April at the age of 52 following a private battle with cancer.
Helen played matriarch Aunt Polly, who acted as the backbone of the Shelby clan for the past five seasons.
Speaking in a recent chat with Empire Magazine, Cillian explained how due to the shoot being delayed, Helen was unable to appear in the finale.
He revealed: ‘We were about to shoot and then the pandemic happened. If we had shot then, Helen would’ve been in the show, and that makes me feel sad.’
‘It’s a huge loss. She was the matriarch of the whole thing. As the character, but just also as her personality.
‘But she’s still present in series six. Steve [Knight, creator] managed to keep her very, very present.’
It comes after Steven himself paid tribute to the late star while discussing details of the upcoming episodes.
‘The loss of the human being of Helen, who was such an incredible person… was a great tragedy for audiences,’ he said on BBC Breakfast.
‘We just felt that the energy of Aunt Polly and the energy of Helen persisted throughout the production.’
Steven also spoke about the show’s decision to continue to make her character’s presence felt in the upcoming episodes.