“She sat there”: how Meryl Streep’s worst audition launched her career
Widely regarded as one of the most talented actors of her generation—or any other, Meryl Streep‘s career, spanning over five decades, is marked by versatility, depth, and a remarkable range of performances. You’ll rarely hear negative things said about her by audiences or by her colleagues in Hollywood. Since Kramer vs Kramer, Streep holds the record for the most Academy Award nominations, with 21 nominations and three wins. She has also received 15 British Academy Film Award nominations, winning two, and 34 Golden Globe nominations, winning eight.
Streep’s feature film debut came with a role in 1977’s Julia. She gained significant attention for her performance in 1978’s The Deer Hunter, earning her first Academy Award nomination: the first of many to come. There’s no single performance that incepted her career, but Kramer vs Kramer definitely got a lot of people paying attention.
Meryl Streep’s portrayal of Joanna Kramer in the 1979 film Kramer vs Kramer marked a watershed moment in her career. The film, directed by Robert Benton, delves into the emotional and legal struggles of a divorcing couple, focusing on the impact on their young son. However, it may surprise you that Streep didn’t have a picture-perfect audition.
It was Streep’s agent, Sam Cohn, who urged Benton to give the young actor the chance to star opposite Dustin Hoffman. Streep’s nuanced performance as Joanna, a mother torn between personal aspirations and maternal responsibilities, earned her widespread acclaim, but the audition did little to help.
In an interview, Benton recalled: “Meryl showed up and she sat there… I don’t think the interview took more than 15 or 20 minutes maximum, and it was … the worst single interview I have ever had with an actor in all my years in Hollywood. The worst. The worst. She walked out the door, and Dustin looked at me, and I looked at Dustin, and we said, That is ‘Joanna Kramer’.”
When you think about the worst interview of your life, it’s usually a memory of not getting the job. For someone with Meryl Streep’s talents, you might belt out the worst interview of your life and still end up getting the position. That’s exactly what happened, and now nobody can look back on the film and say casting Streep was the wrong call since it has become one of the most memorable performances of her illustrious filmography.
She’d go on to the point where she probably didn’t really need to audition anymore, continuing into the 21st century with incredible performances in movies ranging from The Devil Wears Prada to Florence Foster Jenkins. Even her latest appearance in a feature film, Don’t Look Up, managed to garner significant attention not just because of the politically relevant subject matter but also Streep’s delicate approach to playing a US president at a time when the sheer absurdity of the sociopolitical climate neutralises any satirical treatments.
