Meryl Streep Says She Forgot How To Act While Filming Don’t Look Up

Don’t Look Up boasts an impressive ensemble cast with some of Hollywood’s biggest names. Leonardo DiCaprio and newly pregnant Jennifer Lawrence lead the film as a pair of low-level astronomers, while Streep plays the US President. Don’t Look Up also features Jonah Hill,  Cate Blanchett, Timothée Chalamet, and Ariana Grande. The film is currently in the middle of a short theatrical release before streaming on Netflix from December 24 onwards. Critics have had a mixed response to Don’t Look Up, with some praising the film’s humor and the performance of its cast. Others have criticized Don’t Look Up for falling short of its high ambitions and the film currently holds a 56% score on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. 

Now, in an interview with EW, Streep has revealed how she dealt with portraying a US President, and the struggles she encountered along the way. The actor made a surprising revelation, saying that she temporarily forgot how to act and that she “just lost it.” Reflecting on the cause of the trouble, Streep stated that she thought it was due to the impact of lockdown. Streep expanded on her reasoning, stating that “[Lockdown] sort of dismantles your humanity, to be isolated like that.” Check out the actor’s full comments below:

“I found [lockdown] really hard. I didn’t feel funny in the lockdown. When I would come in to shoot my stuff, [I’d] get out of the car and hadn’t spoken to anybody in three weeks. [I’d] walk into the stadium in Worcester, put on the wig and the nails and the suit, and make a speech to all these people. I just lost it. I forgot how to act, I forgot what I was about. It sort of dismantles your humanity, to be isolated like that. But thank god for Jonah, because he kept us laughing.”

Streep’s comments will come as a surprise to fans, as the star is regarded as one of the best actors of her generation. Streep has been decorated with numerous awards, including three of the coveted Academy Awards from a staggering 21 nominations. The reveal highlights the impact that COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns have on actors, and many will be able to relate to feeling like isolation impacted professional work. Concerns about new COVID-19 variants have begun to impact cinema again, with some films again choosing to delay their release dates, and box office projections for mega-releases like Spider-Man: No Way Home being downgraded. 

The wider context aside, fans of Streep will be glad to hear that she managed to regain her mojo with the help of co-star Jonah Hill. The prolific actor is 72 but has shown no signs of slowing down after having had a busy few years. Fans of Streep will be looking forward to her next project and hoping that after Don’t Look Up, she can continue to remember how to act. 

Source: EW

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