Helen Mirren Developing 'Catherine the Great' Miniseries for HBO

Baz Bamigboye of The Daily Mail has reported that Tony, Olivier, and Academy Award-winner, Helen Mirren is currently at work developing a four-part television miniseries based on the life of Russian empress, Catherine the Great, for HBO .

Philip Martin is set to direct the lavish production. Baz reports that the team hopes to film parts of the miniseries in Imperial palaces in St.Petersburg.

Catherine the Great was Empress of Russia from 1762 until 1796, the country's longest-ruling female leader. Under her reign, Russia was revitalized and was recognized as one of the great powers of Europe.

Mirren won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in THE AUDIENCE. The actress has won international recognition for her work on stage, screen and television. For her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen in 2006, she received an Academy Award®, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award®, and BAFTA Award for Best Actress.

She was also named Best Actress by virtually every critics' organization from Los Angeles to London. In 2014 she was honored with the BAFTA Fellowship for her outstanding career in film. On television she played the title role in "Elizabeth I" for which she won Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Awards.