Will Meryl star in a 2024 Black List script?

Every December, the Black List is revealed of the "most-liked" unproduced screenplays in Hollywood. I enjoy perusing the list to see if there seems to be anything Meryl might be a fit for. Let's not forget that her last Oscar nomination was for 2017's The Post, from a screenplay that landed Liz Hannah on the list in 2016. 

Fast forward to 2024 and I noticed a handful of projects that seem plausible from the taglines. I'll start with which ones seem most likely or enticing. For reference, the top metion-getter received 60. 

MILDRED by Josh Corbin (9 mentions)

Years after being banished from her family, an aging matriarch returns to the family business to save her estranged children from a deadly criminal syndicate.

DIANA DESTROYS A WEDDING by Elizabeth Evans (18 mentions)

When her youngest son proposes to a middle-class farmer, New York business icon DIANA IVY incentivizes her dysfunctional children to protect the family name the only way she knows how… by creating a competition: whoever can break up the couple during their luxurious seven-day destination wedding will inherit The Ivy’s Lake Como Estate. 

    *Not sure if the age would be appropriate (could be more a Nicole Kidman-type role). 

OLD SOULS by Hannah Stoddard, Jenny Ulmer (13 mentions)

A trio of sassy, elderly women receive a unique offer from Death for a week of youth in exchange for their lives.

    *Might be a bit too 80 for Brady. 

MOTHERBOY by Tess Brewer (13 mentions)

When a woman becomes trapped in a snowstorm with her overbearing mother-in-law and husband over the Thanksgiving holiday, she begins to suspect that their relationship is not as maternal as it seems. BARBARIAN by way of an erotic, Hallmark holiday movie.

    *Seems like it might be age appropriate, but the Hallmark comparison gives me major pause.

IS THIS YOU? by Kaitlin Fontana (11 mentions)

Maura and her mother Jeanne have always had a tricky relationship. But when Jeanne starts publishing essays about her troubled daughter’s teenage years, those versions of her appear like hormone-fueled poltergeists hell-bent on ruining the real Maura’s tenuous adult stability.

   *Again no idea of the ages of the characters here so could be a no-go from day on.

But perhaps the most interesting news related to this year's Black List, however, is the fact that for the first time, they also released (a day later) an "Adaptation List" that highlights 61 novels "primed to be made into big screen and small screen projects." When I saw that headline, I immediately scrolled down the list to see if there was one particular novel included. Lo and behold, Ann Patchett's State of Wonder is on the list. If you don't know the background on my obsession interest in this novel being adapted with Meryl starring as Dr. Swenson, feel free to familiarize yourself here and here. 

I haven't had the feeling of "OK this so has to happen now" since I wrote about The Post back very early 2017. Four months later they were shooting. So Meryl you just gotta do this! Regardless, there are still interesting/complicated roles out there if Meryl wants them (and if they can get funded, I guess)!

I'd be interested to read others' thoughts on any of the Black List scripts that stuck out to them. Happy speculating. 

Streep "snubbed" at Golden Globes

I used quotation marks for "snubbed" because I don't really consider her missing out on a Golden Globe nomination this morning to be that big of a deal.  Only Murders in the Building received four nominations (Best Comedy Series and for its three leads Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez), and some thought Meryl would receive another nod for her supporting role in the series. 

I, for one, wasn't surprised in the least. In fact, it didn't even occur to me that she would be in the running. While the Emmys have rules about screen time or number of episodes/percentage of episodes to designate acting categorizations, I don't think the Golden Globes has such rules. Meryl's role in season four was rather minor, and she didn't have much of a character arc. I don't rule out the possibility of a guest actor Emmy nod, but no sane person should really have been thinking she was likely to get recognized for this latest season. 

The full list of nominations can be seen here. 

Still hoping that we get some more confirmation on when filming is set to get underway for The Devil Wears Prada 2. And I'm even more interested to get some (any) casting news for The Corrections. Alas, silence. 

Streep honored twice over the weekend

Last night, Meryl was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. She gave a brief but lovely taped acceptance speech. Cher also provided a touching tribute. The section on Meryl starts at 06:42.

The previous night, Liam Neeson presented Streep with the Spirit of Ireland at the 2024 Irish Arts Center Gala in New York City. The pair starred as husband and wife in 1996's Before and After, and two years later of course, Meryl starred in Dancing at Lughnasa, which was shot and takes place in County Donegal. I hadn't realized that Meryl's great-great grandparents on her mother's side were from there! 

Streep and Neeson

Episode 10 of "Only Murders in the Building"--season 4

That's a wrap on season 4 of Only Murders in the Building. Meryl had screen time for the third time during the season, as she (Loretta) and Oliver got hitched. But not before she's heading off to New Zealand for continuation of her TV show's filming. The show has already been renewed for season 5. 

There was an article yesterday from show runner and co-creator John Hoffman, in which he was asked whether having Loretta head off to New Zealand was a deliberate way to buy themselves times to accommodate Meryl's schedule for season 5. His reply:

It’s partly pragmatic in that way, sure. But really it’s about what the trio has built together, and what Oliver and Loretta have built together. That is a little wink to Hollywood at the moment when she’s saying how, suddenly, the budget [on her show] is requiring [they shoot in] New Zealand. That was one part of it. But then it feels to me like a beautifully adult decision that she comes to, saying, “We don’t have to do this in any way traditionally… we never have… we shouldn’t.” There was a slightly longer speech there talking about “we can long for other, and pine for each other, and then when we’re together, it’s that much more magical. That’s all I want is to keep that.” So, we’ll see how it goes. Nothing would make me happier than more Meryl Streep in the show.

What this means to me, is that they want the option to have Meryl in the next season, and if she's willing, it'll likely be brief and sporadic (kind of like this past season). Especially with Meryl (hopefully) having a couple projects due for filming next year (The Devil Wears Prada 2 in the first half of the year and possibly The Corrections in the second half of the year). I don't imagine there's any plan to have Meryl be some major character moving forward. I'd personally be fine if the show wrapped up after the next season. Five seems solid. I'm happy to have seen Meryl do something in the past two years, but it seems more likely that she's moving on to some projects that will require a greater amount of her professional time. Doesn't mean she can't swing by and spend a few days on the Only Murders set if they have scenes they feel they want or need Loretta in. 

Bring on the new projects!

Update on filming dates for "The Devil Wears Prada 2"

Well, Production List is now reporting that the Devil Wears Prada sequel is set for filming in February, 2025. A three-month shoot is expected, with an aim for a late 2026 release. 

I have to say that this timeline makes more sense. The November 30 date that I have previously posted might actually be a date they plan to start shooting some B roll, wide shots or exterior shots that don't necessarily involve the main cast. Or, it could just be that this most recent post is the more accurate one and filming was set to begin in February all along. Also makes sense that they'd want to release in 2026 so as to have the nice little bow of a "20th anniversary" sequel. 

If this indeed wraps in May, and if The Corrections ends up actually happening, I expect that the latter will film next fall with another 2026 release. That would be potentially very big year for Meryl! 

Unrelated, I came across a video yesterday where renown Indian actress Kareena Kapoor Khan stated in response to a question about possibly going more global that she's "a huge fan of Meryl Streep. I would just love to stand in the frame with her." I was not aware of this actress at all, but I couldn't help but see that she's the right age to portray the lead character in State of Wonder. If the woman can do an American accent, she may have just tossed something special out into the universe. 

Episode 7 of "Only Murders in the Building"--season 4

Meryl was back in action last night in episode seven of the fourth season of Only Murders in the Building. Her character, Loretta, has been absent since episode one. She shows up in New York after Oliver (Martin Short) had broken up with her via text, only for them both to realize that Loretta's sort of brushing off of Oliver's marriage proposal was all a misunderstanding. 

The more interesting part of the episode comes of course when Loretta gets into a physical altercation with Melissa McCarthy's character. McCarthy plays Charles's (Steve Martin) younger sister. She fancies Oliver and starts to get territorial with Loretta in her house. 

From what I understand, the two did the whole thing without any stunt doubles. Not too shabby, particularly for Meryl, as she was or was just about to turn 75 at the time of filming this scene. I've said it before and I'll say it again, with how good her posture and mobility is, she's capable of believably portraying people much younger than her chronological age, which bodes well for hopefully many more years of great performances in quality projects. 

I'm guessing that we'll see Loretta in one or two of the remaining three episodes of the season. Since the show was renewed for a fifth, and Loretta and Oliver are now engaged, I wouldn't be surprised to see Meryl at least have a cameo in the next season. But gladly, she'll also be busy with other things soon as well. Is there a possibility for guest Emmy nominations for this season?

"The Devil Wears Prada" sequel set to begin filming next month

Production List is reporting that the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada is scheduled to begin filming on November 30. This was an unexpected piece of news. With news of the project being in development only having coming out in early July, I figured the earliest we'd see it in production would be sometime next year. I guess the script was more fine-tuned than many of us probably thought it was. 

Assuming this is all true, we'll most certainly see this released sometime in the second half of next year. I had thought it would be kind of cool to have the two sequels released exactly twenty years apart, but if released next year, it'll be only nineteen. I suppose the timeline makes a little more sense coming off the recent news of Meryl starring in the TV adaptation of The Corrections. That might take up a fair amount of her time, and the filming of Prada this year would make for a more open schedule in '25. I do hope that The Devil Wears Prada 2 is only a working title. 

One thing that I'm a little curious about is the possibility of Meryl's involvement in the Joni Mitchell biopic. It was "rumored" in July also, with no confirmation from reputable sources. However, I recently checked and the official Joni Mitchell website included the post! I don't know if that actually means anything. Whoever is running that site might not actually be all that discerning about what's going on with a potential feature film about the singer's life. Regardless, that fact that it was on the site made me furrow my brow a bit in suspicion. In the original article, the rumored filming schedule was supposed to start sometime late summer or early fall. That would have to start essentially now for that to be true. I suppose it could still happen, but even if it does, Meryl would only be playing the older version of Joni, so it wouldn't be like she would have months of shooting to contend with. 

It's wild how all of a sudden with the Prada sequel, The Corrections, and possible involvement in Mamma Mia! 3 and a Joni Mitchell biopic (although I'm dubious about this last one), Meryl seems super busy with projects. The landscape seemed pretty barren only a  few weeks ago. 

Keep 'em comin'.