Meryl Streep livid at Julia Roberts for hijacking the end of August: Osage County
I think the official story for why Meryl Streep didn’t come to Toronto to promote August: Osage County was some kind of illness. I missed seeing her at TIFF because A) I love her, B) I enjoy when Meryl promotes any movie, and C) if Meryl had come to TIFF, she definitely would have made Julia Roberts take a seat. When everything was said and done, though, Julia made sure that TIFF was ALL ABOUT JULIA and just as soon as critics saw Osage, Harvey Weinstein made the executive decision to ensure that only Meryl was put up for Best Actress. So, Julia might have gotten the attention, but Meryl wins in the long run because she is, as Samuel L. Jackson would say, Meryl Motherf—king Streep.
So is that the end of it? Nope. The Enquirer has some interesting backstory/conspiracy theory as to why Meryl now hates Julia Roberts and why Meryl refused to go to TIFF:
A disgusted MERYL STREEP never wants to work with JULIA ROBERTS ever again! WHY? Because Julia isn’t about to let anything get in the way of her close-up – even fellow Oscar winner Meryl!
A source says the “Pretty Woman” actress hijacked the ending of the stars’ blockbuster new movie, leaving Meryl – and the film’s original closing scene – on the cutting room floor.
“Julia can’t get enough of herself on the big screen,” a Hollywood insider told The ENQUIRER. “When she got the chance, she threw Meryl under the bus for more screen time, a glowing close-up of her alone and a brand-new ending to their film. “Meryl’s so disgusted she boycotted the premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.”
Meryl plays Julia’s mother in the upcoming film version of the Broadway smash “August: Osage County,” which also stars Juliette Lewis, Ewan McGregor and Dermot Mulroney. The film, about three generations of a dysfunctional Oklahoma family, is already generating Academy Award buzz, including possible Best Actress Oscar nominations for both Meryl and Julia.
While the two women reportedly got along on the set, the original ending was a shot of Meryl alone after she’d been abandoned by her daughter. But the scene didn’t test well with audiences.
“That’s when Julia made her move,” the insider said. “She told (director) John Wells, ‘I love her to death, but she looks so sad on screen it’s a downer. Maybe the camera could just hold on me for the final image.’ ”
Although the ending of the movie could still change, it appears Julia ultimately got her way. For now, the final scene is a shot of the 45-year-old actress driving away alone.
“Meryl was livid,” the source added. “And she never wants to work with Julia again.”
I haven’t seen the film yet, but now I’m dying to just to see which ending they went with. If the last image is Julia, then I’ll totally believe this conspiracy. If the last image is Meryl, then I’ll believe that Harvey Weinstein knows in his heart of hearts that audiences will ALWAYS prefer Meryl to Julia no matter what. Meryl could be playing an ax murderer and people would still be like, “Yeah, still more likeable than Julia Roberts. Meryl turns in another Oscar-worthy performance!” That being said, I don’t believe Meryl is quite this petty. If Julia really did convince the director to change the ending, I could see Meryl being peeved, but not “I never want to speak to Julia again!” pissed-off.
But what do I know? If they were making this film just for me, it would be two hours of Benedict Cumberbatch sitting at a piano, naked, and singing a special song just for me.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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