Mariah Carey had some regal shoes to fill when she accepted her acclaimed role in Precious — the part was originally offered to Oscar-winning dame Helen Mirren.

The diva — once panned as a horrible actress for her cinematic disaster Glitter — has wowed critics with her performance as a dowdy social worker in the poignant story of an abused teenage girl, but she reveals The Queen star Mirren was originally offered the role.

“Someone told me Helen Mirren had been offered the role of the social worker, but had to pull out. So it was daunting to try and fill the shoes of this great Academy Award-winning actress, but then I decided to snap myself out of that mindset and figure out what I could bring to the role.”