31 Mesmerizing Facts About Meryl Streep We Bet You Didn’t Know Before

Be it a biopic or musical or a comedy, Meryl Streep simply does it all just effortlessly, leaping right into the character. It’s as if, she is the character herself, not an entirely different person. There’s no doubt that Meryl Streep is the greatest actress of her generation, who has been leaving us speechless with her performance, for decades! But, do we know everything about the actress? Here are some really interesting things from her career, and certain incidents during her shootings, we bet you never knew before:

1. In the initial stages of her career, she received a letter from Bette Davis, the greatest American movie actress ever, calling Streep to be her successor as the premier American actress. However, according to A. Scott Berg, the official biographer of Katharine Hepburn, the greatest female star of Classic Hollywood Cinema, Streep was the least favorite modern actress for Hepburn.
2. On the first day of filming of “The Devil Wears Prada,” when Meryl met Anne Hathaway, she reportedly told her that she was perfect for the role and that she is happy for the chance to work together. After a pause, she is said to have continued saying “That’s the last nice things I’ll say to you.” And it was.
3. The scene from “Out of Africa,” in which her character Baroness Karen Blixen was introduced to her servants, was actually filmed as a single shot, in the initial take. Streep had to exchange dialogues with several other characters in this lengthy shot. It was reported that a large beetle had crawled down the front of her snug jacket, just a few seconds after the camera started rolling.
4. Streep had continued to stay in character and filmed the entire scene, without showing a slightest sign. Just as the director Sydney Pollack said “Cut,” she yelled “get this thing off of me” and ripped open her jacket.
5. In the 2008 movie “Doubt (I)” the shawl that her character Sister Aloysius Beauvier can be seen wearing, was reportedly knitted by herself.
6. Her co-star Pierce Brosnan from “Mamma Mia,” is said to have signed on to star in the movie, with no idea about the story or anything, other than the fact that Meryl Streep was the lead. He had simply said that he would sign on for anything involving Streep.
7. Even her co-star Hugh Grant from “Florence Foster Jenkins,” is said to have been semi-retired from acting, when director Stephen Frears approached him. Grant is said to have taken the offer, only to act opposite Meryl.
8. During the rehearsals for the movie “Into the Woods,” she reportedly jumped on a table, but was falling head first, as her foot got stuck in her costume. The director Rob Marshall and her co-star James Corden, froze in terror at the thought of her death. However, she was saved by another co-star Emily Blunt.
9. The reaction of surprise in scene from “It’s Complicated” in which her character Jane answers a call from her daughter, while Jake kisses her, leading to her say “You are still on the phone” instead of “You are still on the plane,” was reportedly genuine as Streep did not know her co-star Alec Baldwin would kiss her.
10. It was reported that director Nancy Meyers asked Alec to kiss Streep, as that’s what the character would do. Streep, being the professional actress, kept the scene going and even improvised and incorporated her mistake, allowing the scene to make it into the movie.
11. While the filming of the lion attacking an oxen scene from “Out of Africa,” Streep was informed that the lion had been tethered by one of its back legs and that it would not get too close. However, during a final shot, the lion had no restraint and got to closer to her, leading to the fear scene on her face being genuine.
12. She reportedly donated her wardrobe of designer gowns and shoes from the movie “The Devil Wears Prada,” to a charity auction.
13. In the 2019 movie “Little Woman,” the speech by Amy in regards to marriage was actually suggested by Streep, though it was not in the initial script.
14. After a conversation with the writer and director Greta Gerwig, she claimed that the speech was necessary to make the modern audience understand the true powerlessness of women in that period. The director agreed to her point and the speech was written immediately.
15. She is said to have recorded her vocal for the song “The Winner Takes It All, from the movie “Mamma Mia,” in a single take, in Stockholm, Sweden. Benny Anderson, who was the co-composer of the songs, claimed her to be “a miracle.”
16. Her movie “The Post” was her first collaboration with director Steven Spielberg. Initially, when she learned that Steven never rehearses with his actors, she was flabbergasted. Although, her co-star Tom Hanks was well aware of this fact, he kept it a secret from her, anticipating a “diva” reaction from her.
17. Despite this shock, she is said to have got along with the director to the extent that Steven was so impressed with her character transformation. He claimed in an interview that he had a very difficult time in restraining himself from complimenting her on every take.
18. In preparation for her role as Margaret Thatcher in the 2011 movie “The Iron Lady,” she spent months watching broadcasts of the Prime Minister, in an effort to learn her mannerisms and also the way of speech. Having never met Thatcher in real life, she spoke to more than a dozen people who knew her, to learn more about her.
19. During the shooting of the hair-washing scene from “Out of Africa,” she had been extremely nervous, as their spot on the scene was very close to some territorial hippopotamus. However, she filmed the scene without showing a bit of her fear.
20. She claimed that she based her character Miranda Priestly’s appearance from “The Devil Wears Prada,” on the famous 85-year-old model Carmen Dell’Orefice and Christine Lagarde. As for the icily calm and quiet voice, she is said to have based it on Clint Eastwood.
21. Her character Mary Louise Wright in “Big Little Lies,” is said to have been written specifically for her by Liane Moraity. In fact the character was named after her real name – Mary Louise.
22. It was reported that Netflix was interested in the 2019 movie “The Laundromat (I),” only when there was talks of having Streep cast as Ellen Martin. Her involvement in the movie is said to have been instrumental in getting the required finance.
23. Her co-star Rebecca Ferguson from “Florence Foster Jenkins,” who plays the role of Kathleen, reportedly stayed long after finishing her scenes during shooting, just to watch and learn from Meryl’s performance. Ferguson even claimed watching Meryl to be her real acting school.
24. Streep claimed that just as she turned 40, she received three offers for witch roles in different high production movies. However, not being a fan of a witch character, she had a “no witches” rule implemented in her contract.
25. However, she broke her “no witches” rule by herself, when director Rob Marshall and composer Stephen Sondheim, contacted her with the script for the Disney movie “Into the Woods.”
26. During the filming of “Little Woman,” in between takes of the scene in which her character and Amy are in the European carriage, she had casually mentioned that she wanted French Fries. Just a few minutes later, Wendy’s Fries was delivered to her as well as the entire crew.
27. Most of her co-stars from different movies have claimed the experience of working with Meryl to have been the best in their career, while admitting to have been very nervous too. For instance, her co-star John Krasinski once claimed in an interview that he was very nervous to act alongside her in the “It’s Complicated” movie.
28. Director Sydney Pollack was initially hesitant to have Meryl Streep play the role of Karen Blixen, as he considered her to be not sexy enough for the character. She was so determined to get the role, that she requested a meeting with him.
29. She reportedly showed up for the meeting with Pollack, wearing a low-cut blouse and a push-up bra. The director was convinced that he had judged wrong and offered her the part.
30. For her role as Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady,” she was paid $1,000,000, all of which she reportedly donated to the Women’s History Museum.
31. Meryl Streep Net Worth: $100 Million