Meryl Streep Simply Invited Herself Right Into a Role on 'Big Little Lies'

We’ve long suspected it, but now it’s been entirely confirmed—Meryl Streep is officially projecting that B.D.E. The three-time Academy Award winner, like the rest of us, was totally hooked on the first series of Big Little Lies. But, unlike the rest of us, Streep dropped a casual email over to Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman after viewing, to let them know that she’d be arriving on set for filming of the second season. And THAT, ladies, is the attitude that we all need to channel at work going forwards.

It’s already been confirmed that Streep will appear as the mother-in-law of Celeste, played by Kidman, in the hugely anticipated second season of Big Little Lies, set to finally come to screens in 2019. But, for anyone who thought that landing such a legendary actress must have been a challenge for the show, Kidman has set the record straight. In fact, it was all down to Meryl.

Speaking to Variety about how Streep came to be involved in the hit HBO show, Kidman recalled the nonchalant email that she and Witherspoon received, the night after Big Little Lies scooped the Golden Globe for Best TV Limited Series.

“She goes, ‘I suppose now I have to join you.’ And we were like, ‘What?’ The two of us were just shocked," she laughed, adding that Streep happily signed up for the show without even seeing a script. “She hadn’t even read it. That’s how much she wanted to support us.”

It’s a dream come true for the Aquaman star to be acting alongside Streep again (the pair, who are longtime friends, previously starred in The Hours together). She recently credited the legendary Hollywood great as paving the way for older actresses in the business. Kidman told an audience at BAFTA: “There’s a time in this industry where they go ‘Oh well, you are past your due date … we are moving on to the next thing’.

"Having people like Meryl Streep and Susan Sarandon and Glenn Close … it gives you a chance… Maggie Smith and Judie Dench, the greats. They are paving the way.”

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