Watch: Dame Helen Mirren Gets Spooky in the ‘Winchester’ Trailer

Dame Helen Mirren is well known for many roles, but as an actress she does seem to have a particular type. The Oscar winner tends to play royalty (she’s played both Queens Elizabeth, after all) or other strong British women such as the troubled DCI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect.

So her latest big screen role – as tortured American heiress Sarah Winchester in the upcoming horror movie Winchster: The House That Ghosts Built – is generally something of a departure from type for her. (Though, probably not as much as you might think.)

Based on a true story, Winchester is not just a terrifying ghost story (though it will doubtless feature scares aplenty), but a sad tale of a woman tormented by guilt and grief.