The true film icon Meryl Streep is nothing short of being the kind of performer that only comes along once in a generation. She’s a genuine rarity in the acting world, known for her wide versatility and ability to play starkly differing roles, consistently delivering emotional nuance, drama, humour and whatever the given character demands.
Over five decades in the industry, Streep has never stopped short of throwing herself into every character she plays, whether as a troubled housewife in Kramer vs. Kramer, a Holocaust survivor in Sophie’s Choice, or even former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 2001’s The Iron Lady.
One character that has always stood out in Streep’s wildly impressive filmography, though, is her portrayal of Miranda Priestly, a fearsome fashion magazine editor, in the 2006 comedy-drama The Devil Wears Prada, directed by David Frankel and written by Aline Brosh McKenna, based on Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 novel of the same name.
A fascinating insight into Streep’s character, though, is its strange inspiration. The last person we might expect the legendary actor to have drawn influence from is Clint Eastwood, but that’s precisely what happened. She took the softly spoken voice for Miranda Priestly from Eastwood in Sergio Leone’s 1966 spaghetti western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
Discussing the importance of Eastwood in Leone’s classic, Streep noted: “He never, ever, ever raises his voice, and everyone has to lean in to listen, and he is automatically the most powerful person in the room.” That’s exactly the way Streep wanted to portray Priestly, by not actually needing to shout, just commanding a room through respect alone.
It was an approach that surprised Anne Hathaway, who’d anticipated Streep to come in all guns blazing. “I’d read the script so many times, and I was expecting [Meryl] to come in imperious, loud, and barking orders,” she said. How wrong Hathaway – who played Priestly’s co-assistant – was, and how equally impressive of Streep.
Streep’s performance in The Devil Wears Prada is a testament to her nuanced talent as an actor. She’s able to find more in character than many others of her contemporaries would be able. “The real scary parts of her had to do with the fact that she didn’t try to ingratiate,” Streep said of Priestly, “Which is always the female emollient in any situation where you want your way.”
Check out the trailer for The Devil Wears Prada below to catch a glimpse of Eastwood’s inspiration.