Everyone's favorite "Iron Lady" Meryl Streep is finally moving from Downing Street to Oklahoma for "August: Osage County."
The adaptation, which was announced in 2010, features Streep as Violet Weston, the matriarch of a messed-up family (is there any other kind?).
Julia Roberts is officially in as her oldest daughter Barbara, a college professor who avoids visiting home for plenty of reasons, including the drug problems and generally unpleasant demeanor of her mom.
The two mega-stars' schedules have a September slot, and that's when filming is set to start. The release date for "August" will be aimed at the 2013 awards season, naturally. It is, after all, from The Weinstein Company, who usually has at least a couple of horses in the Oscar race.
No one else has been cast yet in this adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play, but it's full of plum roles that will surely attract plenty of high-flying actors.
Streep just picked up the prestigious (and adorable!) Golden Bear Award for Lifetime Achievement at the Berlin Film Festival, and last week snagged a BAFTA for her role as Maggie Thatcher in "The Iron Lady." While Roberts has her own Oscar to shine and plenty of big roles in her past, it's been a while since she's owned the screen like she did in the '80s and '90s. She can definitely do drama -- check out "Steel Magnolias" if you need proof, and bring a few hankies -- but she's sort of fallen out of favor in Hollywood.
Will dramatic roles in "August" and "The Normal Heart" mean a second act for the "Erin Brockovich" Oscar-winner? We sure hope so! In the meantime, you can check her out in this trailer for "Mirror, Mirror," where she plays the scene-chewing Evil Queen.
