'My mum influenced me in a way no one else ever will' - Saoirse Ronan hails mum Monica as one of women who have most inspired her

Saoirse Ronan has earned Oscar nominations for roles in ‘Atonement’, ‘Brooklyn’ and ‘Ladybird’. Photo: AP

Sean O'Grady

Saoirse Ronan has told how she believes women today are “unleashing themselves” from the boundaries which inhibited them in the past.

In a conversation with actress Lupita Nyong’o for Marie Claire magazine about their new campaign for Calvin Klein Women, the Carlow actress (24) spoke about how she thinks femininity has changed over the years.

“In the past, there was a lot of pressure for women to have a certain type of femininity, and now they’re sort of unleashing themselves, and that’s quite empowering,” she said.

Saoirse told how her mother, Monica, has been a huge influence on her.

Saoirse Ronan with her parents, Paul and Monica. Photo: Brian McEvoy

Her mum was one of the first people Saoirse thanked when she took to the stage at this year’s Golden Globe awards to accept the gong for Best Actress in a Comedy for Lady Bird.

“My mum influenced me in a way no one else ever will. We’re best friends and partners in crime,” she said.

Saoirse has previously hailed the “female revolution” going on in Hollywood thanks to the Times Up and Me Too movements.

"We've gone from saying, 'Yes, we really need to make a change and we've all got to stick together' to, 'Oh f**k, we really need to make a change.' Now more than ever, feminism is at the core of my life,” she said.

As part of their interview for the publication, the Brooklyn star and the 12 Years A Slave Oscar winner were asked to pick women who inspired them.

“I picked Sissy Spacek and Nina Simone. I grew up watching Sissy and loved how she was able to balance looking incredibly innocent with these very dark roles and tortured characters.

“And I definitely wanted to have a musician. We would always play Nina’s music in the car in the summertime. She reminds me of that time when I was young,” she said.