Netflix brings us a first official clip from the upcoming “Don’t Look Up”. The comedy sees Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio teaming up as astronomy grad student, Kate Dibiasky, and her professor, Dr. Randall Mindy, who discover a comet is going to hit Earth. The two then embark on a giant media tour to warn mankind of an approaching comet – but not many people seem to care. Directed by Adam McKay, “Don’t Look Up” features a slew of stars, including Timothée Chalamet, Cate Blanchett and Tyler Perry. Ariana Grande, Rob Morgan, Mark Rylance, Ron Perlman and Kid Cudi are also featured. A first teaser dropped earlier this month, with much awards season buzz surrounding it. “Don’t Look Up” will arrive in select theaters on Dec. 10 and on Netflix on December 24.

On September 18, 1981, United Artists released “The French Lieutenant’s Woman”, in which a 32-year-old Meryl Streep played her first leading role in a motion picture. Two leading roles to be fair, since the story depicts John Fowles’ novel not only as a straight-forward adaptation, but as an embedded film within a film that portrays the lead actors’ laissez faire fling on a movie while performing the tightlipped Victorian romance between a palaeontologist and a social outcast – a contrast on how social perception or acceptance on infidelity has changed over the years, at least 40 years ago. “The French Lieutenant’s Woman” is a curious film, a drama for grown-ups, and a very odd choice for Streep’s first leading role. After her breakthrough years and an Academy Award in 1980, an All-American role like “Silkwood” would have seemed a more logical fit to hone a movie star image. But Streep, giving us a first taste of her transformative craft that would stun audiences in the many years to come, immersed herself into the British landscape and created two very unique performances in one film.

Instead of writing a long essay on the film’s anniversary I’ll rather guide you through the extensive collection of information, pictures and articles we have amassed over the last years. Have a look at the box on the left for shortcuts. I’ll give you my top takeaways anyway: The film was a critical and commercial success, receiving 11 BAFTA nominations with three wins, inlcuding Best Actress for Streep. She also won the Golden Globe as Best Actress Drama and received her third Academy Award nomination in four years, the first as Best Actress, which was awarded to Katharine Hepburn. Streep was not the first choice for the part – Fowles’ personal choice was Helen Mirren. But the studio deemed her unsuitable, thanks to the recent release of the notorious “Caligula”. Even more surprisingly, this was Jeremy Irons’ first leading role as well, and only his second motion picture.

If you want to treat yourself with an anniverary viewing today and don’t own the DVD, you can check out if it’s available to stream in your region. If you want to share your thoughts on the film, head over to Twitter for comments and selected pictures.

In the first official look at the Netflix comedy Don’t Look Up, starring DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, the teaser trailer centers its story around DiCaprio’s character having a panic attack ahead of an Oval Office meeting after uncovering an Armageddon-like revelation. Don’t Look Up tells the story of two low-level astronomers, played by DiCaprio and Lawrence, who must go on a giant media tour to warn mankind of an approaching comet that will destroy planet earth. The star-studded movie is written and directed by Adam McKay, the filmmaker behind the Oscar-nominated movies Vice and The Big Short. Mark Rylance, Ron Perlman, Timothée Chalamet, Ariana Grande, Scott Mescudi (aka Kid Cudi), Himesh Patel, Melanie Lynskey, Michael Chiklis and Tomer Sisley round out the cast. The teaser trailer only runs for one minute and 18 seconds, but prompts several chuckles as Kate Dibiasky (Lawrence), an astronomy grad student, and her professor Dr. Randall Mindy (DiCaprio) set an infuriating White House meeting with a room of indifferent government officials, including those played by Hill and Meryl Streep, to explain their dire discovery of a comet orbiting within the solar system. Don’t Look Up hits select theaters Dec. 10 and releases on Netflix on Dec. 24. With the release of the trailer, three brand new production stills featuring Meryl have been published as well.

According to Variety and other news outlets, Netflix has announced release dates for its entire fall and winter film slate, a list of buzzy films that includes “Don’t Look Up,” a dark comedy starring Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio and directed by Adam McKay; Jane Campion’s drama “The Power of the Dog” with Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons; and Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing.” […] To close out the year, Campion’s latest “The Power of the Dog” arrives on Netflix on Dec. 1 (in theaters on Nov. 17), with Sandra Bullock’s “The Unforgivable” slated for Dec. 10 (in theaters Nov. 24), “Don’t Look Up” scheduled for Dec. 24 (in theaters Dec. 10) and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter” on Dec. 31 (in theaters Dec. 17). In total, Netflix will release around 40 movies throughout the rest of 2021, continuing its promise to deliver new films every week for the entire year. Check out the full lineup over at Variety.

According to People, one lucky fan will be getting a private Zoom session with The Devil Wears Prada cast! Lollipop Theater Network is auctioning off the rare prize of zooming with the A-List cast — Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci — to benefit the organization in its 20th year. The 10-minute call will give the lucky winner the chance to see the cast reunite 15 years after the hit film was released. “We are so thrilled to be celebrating our 20th anniversary with our amazing partners at Charitybuzz and the incredibly talented cast of The Devil Wears Prada,” said Lollipop Theater Network Executive Director Evelyn Iocolano in a statement. “We have seen the tremendous impact that these kinds of interactions have on our young patients, and now one lucky bidder will have the chance to experience it themselves, all while contributing much-needed funds to keep our programs up and running! Here’s to the next 20 years of Lollipop!” the statement concluded. The auction is open now and will end on August 3 at www.charitybuzz.com/thedevilwearsprada. Many thanks to Glenn for the heads-up.

I wasn’t interested in doing a biopic on Anna; I was interested in her position in her company. I wanted to take on the burdens she had to carry, along with having to look nice every day. Absolute power corrupts absolutely…. I liked that there wasn’t any backing away from the horrible parts of her, and the real scary parts of her had to do with the fact that she didn’t try to ingratiate, which is always the female emollient in any situation where you want your way – what my friend Carrie Fisher used to call “the squeezy and tilty” of it all. [Miranda] didn’t do any of that. (Meryl Streep, Entertainment Weekly)

If looks could kill, then for 15 years The Devil Wears Prada has been a serial threat. Director David Frankel’s adaptation of Lauren Weisberger’s Faustian yarn – inspired by the author’s time working under Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour – emerged as a modern classic through its mélange of impossibly chic clothes, scorching dialogue, and pointed portrayal of women in power. In time, the movie has become a beacon for gender parity, too, with its ice-queen Runway editor Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) occupying a delectably unapologetic position of power in a male-dominated world and, as a Hollywood antihero, a rare kind of leading lady. The film struck a chord with its feminist-tinged, broadly appealing story, and has endured largely thanks to the spectacular chemistry among Streep, Anne Hathaway (who plays Miranda’s assistant-turned protegée Andy Sachs), and scene-stealers Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci, and Adrian Grenier. For the first time since the film’s release in June 2006, EW has gathered those stars (and more) for a fierce reunion as they dig their heels into Devil’s legacy. You can watch the full 30 minutes reunion exclusively on Entertainment Weekly’s website.

Update: Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline will perform “Dear Elizabeth” at the Spotlight on Plays virtual benefit series from June 17 to June 21, 2021. Based on the compiled letters between poets Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Bishop, Dear Elizabeth maps the relationship of the two poets from first meeting to an abbreviated affair – and the turmoil of their lives in between. Directed by Kate Whoriskey. Here’s the original press release from March: According to Deadline, Meryl Streep, Mary-Louise Parker and Carla Gugino have joined the line-up of actors taking part in this year’s virtual Spotlight on Plays series benefitting The Actors Fund, with Streep reuniting with her Sophie’s Choice co-star Kevin Kline on Sarah Ruhl’s Dear Elizabeth. Parker is set to perform in Paula Vogel’s The Baltimore Waltz. Gugino will be teamed with the previously announced Ellen Burstyn in Lillian Hellman’s Watch on the Rhine. Others previously announced, in addition to Kline and Burstyn, are Kathryn Hahn, Keanu Reeves, Debbie Allen, Bobby Cannavale, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad, Heidi Schreck, Alia Shawkat, Heather Alicia Simms and Alicia Stith. The Spotlight on Plays series, launched last year on the Broadway’s Best Shows website, features actors performing the works remotely, with the readings pre-recorded and edited. The series, which begins Thursday, benefits The Actors Fund. The series begins Thursday, March 25, with Larissa FastHorse’s The Thanksgiving Play at 8pm ET/5pm PT, and continues wit Pearl Cleage’s Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous on Thursday, April 8 at 8pm ET/5pm PT. Additional casting and dates will be announced soon. The Spotlight on Plays events are livestreamed on Stellar and available for a strictly limited amount of time. Season subscriptions and individual ticket information is available on the Broadway’s Best Shows website. Many thanks to Glenn and Alvaro for the heads-up.

Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s three-part documentary “Hemingway” (premiering April 5 on PBS) details the life and career of the Nobel Prize-winning author Ernest Hemingway. According to a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, the series uncovers a more nuanced character than the heavy-drinking, bullfight-attending, man’s man of repute, with co-directors Ken Burns and Lynn Novick exploring, for example, Hemingway’s interest in gender fluidity. “The macho facade is superficial,” says Burns, who previously collaborated with Novick on 1994’s Baseball and 2017’s The Vietnam War, among other projects. “I think this is one of the reasons why you can’t just say, ‘Oh, dead white male, goodbye.’ It’s as complex a biography as we’ve ever worked on.” Jeff Daniels recites Hemingway’s letters and prose, while the author’s four wives are voiced by Keri Russell, Mary-Louise Parker, Patricia Clarkson, and Meryl Streep. The latter performed her role of Hemingway’s third spouse, writer Martha Gellhorn, following the start of the pandemic. “We planned to record Meryl Streep on March 24 of last year and had to cancel, but her son had a recording studio in his home,” says Novick. “She and Ken were in touch about pronunciation questions, but basically this was a gift from Meryl Streep.” “I just want to add that I think she’s going places, she’s really got a future,” says Burns, with a laugh. “No, she’s fabulous.”

Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s three-part, six-hour documentary series, HEMINGWAY, examines the visionary work and turbulent life of one of the greatest and most influential American writers – Ernest Hemingway. Intimate and insightful, the series weaves together Hemingway’s biography with excerpts from his fiction, non-fiction and personal correspondence – a structure that nods to Hemingway’s own creative process of drawing inspiration from lived experience. The film penetrates the mythology surrounding Hemingway – cultivated by his larger than life exploits, public bravado, and occasional tall-tale – to reveal a deeply troubled and ultimately tragic figure. His story is told with the help of interviews with literary scholars, celebrated writers including Edna O’Brien, Mario Vargas Llosa, Abraham Verghese, and Tobias Wolff, and Hemingway’s son, Patrick. Six years in the making, HEMINGWAY is a treasure trove of rarely seen photographs and archival footage. The film is further benefitted by unprecedented access to original manuscripts that show the painstaking process by which Hemingway created some of the most important works of fiction in American letters, including the novels, The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea; short stories “Hills Like White Elephants,” “The Short and Happy Life of Francis Macomber,”“Up in Michigan,” “Indian Camp”and “The Snows of Kilimanjaro;” as well as nonfiction works, Death in the Afternoon and A Moveable Feast. Hemingway’s words are brought vividly to life by Jeff Daniels. Meryl Streep, Keri Russell, Patricia Clarkson, and Mary-Louise Parker read the voices of Hemingway’s four wives. Original music is provided by Johnny Gandelsman and David Cieri.

According to Deadline, Meryl Streep is set to star in Places, Please, a film drama that will be directed by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Michael Cristofer from a script by UCLA MFA alum Elisabeth Seldes Annacone (The Changing Room). The film is a love letter to Broadway, where both Streep and Cristofer started their careers. In an interview here, they describe their start together on a Broadway performance of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, which figures in the film. Their comments on the stage, and how Broadway can reemerge from its pandemic plight, are included below. Places, Please will shoot this summer in New York, and will be introduced to buyers for the virtual Berlin Market, with CAA Media Finance repping domestic distribution rights and Filmnation handling international sales. Streep, Steven Rogers (I, Tonya) and Jane Rosenthal (The Irishman) will produce. Berry Welsh will executive produce. In the film, Streep will play Lillian Hall, an actress who is synonymous with Broadway. Throughout her long, illustrious career, she has never missed a performance—not for her daughter, not for illness, not for any reason. Yet in the rehearsals leading to her next Broadway production, her confidence is challenged. People and events conspire to take away her ability to do what she loves most. Suddenly, Hall is forced to reckon with the past and the price she has paid for the choices she made in her life and her art. Can she repair a lifetime of parental neglect? Can she reconcile herself to the demands of aging, its real and perceptual debilities? Can she navigate the shoals of self-doubt and loss, the betrayals of others and of her own body? Will she go down in the record books in a blaze of glory? Not without a fight. In explaining the genesis of the film, Cristofer and Streep explain its tie to the launch of each of their stars, and how their sympathy for the unprecedented hardship facing the live theater industry in the pandemic gave this film urgency.

…and Meryl Streep is not among them. It feels a bit odd to write about someone not receiving awards attention as a news bit, but here we go. To the surprise of many, as the Golden Globe nominations were announced this morning, Meryl did not receive a nomination for “The Prom” in the Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical category. Besides a nomination for Best Picture – Comedy or Musical, the only acting nomination it has received went to James Corden. Take it with a grain of salt – we have been through worse things this past year, and since there won’t be a ceremony the way it used to be, we won’t be missing any red carpet coverage anyway. Plus, we’ve had our fair share of nominations in the past, with Meryl being a record breaking nominee with 30 nominations in total – the last time being last year’s nod for “Big Little Lies” – and 8 wins including the Cecil B. DeMille Life Achievement Award in 2017.