Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep
The Iron Lady, Sophie's Choice, Out of Africa
Meryl Streep began her acting career with a level of worship typically reserved for seasoned veterans. From her early work in The Deer Hunter (1978) and Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), it quickly became apparent to the sharpest of critics - even the most casual of moviegoers - that the chameleon-like actress was an unparalleled master of character, accents and genres.
The benchmark was set for every working actress with her work as a Polish Nazi camp survivor, damaged by the unthinkable decision she was once forced to make in her Oscar-winning performance in Sophie's Choice (1982). Through Silkwood (1983), Out of Africa (1985) and A Cry in the Dark (1988), she continued to set a standard few could hope to achieve, primarily with her mastery of accents that included Polish, Danish and Australian, among others.
After her peak in the early 1980s, the multi-Oscar winner spent the subsequent decades maintaining her brilliance, showcasing yet another of her talents - singing competently - in Postcards from the Edge (1990) and Mamma Mia (2008), capturing the aching desire of an aging woman in The Bridges of Madison County (1995), and proving she could draw laughter as well as tears in The Devil Wears Prada (2006). Simply put, she could do it all, and generations of actresses coming up behind her often cited her work as the reason they pursued the craft in the first place.
Her portrayal of the stern headmistress Sister Aloysius in Doubt (2008) earned the decorated actress yet another Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, which was followed by a surprise win for Outstanding Female Actress at the 15th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. She had yet another banner year in 2009, starting with her dead-on portrayal of cooking maven and popular television personality, Julia Child, in Nora Ephron's winning romantic comedy, Julie & Julia. For her portrayal of the famous chef, she earned a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy as well as an Oscar nod for Best Actress.
After providing the voice for the animated Mrs. Fox in Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), directed by Wes Anderson, she delivered another winning performance in the romantic comedy, It's Complicated (2009). She played a well-adjusted divorcee who finds herself in a state of complicated affairs with her ex-husband (Alec Baldwin) and his much-younger wife (Lake Bell). The role earned her a second Golden Globe nomination that year in the same category.
She went on to earn considerable acclaim for her leading role in the biopic The Iron Lady (2011), in which she delivered an essence-capturing performance of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Despite some misgivings from Thatcher's real-life family about her portrayal, the role earned Meryl widespread critical acclaim at home and in England, and nabbed her a Golden Globe and an Oscar for Best Actress.
Meryl Streep has received 17 Academy Award nominations, winning three, and 26 Golden Globe nominations, winning eight, more nominations than any other actor in the history of either award. Her work has also earned her two Emmy Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Cannes Film Festival award, five New York Film Critics Circle Awards, two BAFTA awards, an Australian Film Institute Award, five Grammy Award nominations, and a Tony Award nomination, amongst others. She was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2004 and the Kennedy Center Honor in 2009 for her contribution to American culture through performing arts, the youngest actress in each award's history.
She is married to sculptor Don Gummer. They have four children: Henry "Hank" Wolfe, Mary Willa "Mamie", Grace Jane, and Louisa Jacobson. Both Mamie and Grace are actresses. Hank is a musician who performs under the name Henry Wolfe.
We will see Meryl again in USA theaters on August 10, in the comedy Hope Springs - Arnold & Kay Soames (Tommy Lee Jones & Meryl Streep) attend an intense counseling weekend (counselor played by Steve Carrell) to decide the fate of their 30+ years marriage.
Meryl Streep at the Internet Movie Database