Nicole Kidman Opens Up About Getting Meryl Streep On Big Little Lies

Celeste dressed up for trivia night

It's no secret that we're in the midst of a TV renaissance at the moment. Between streaming services, premium channels, and traditional networks, there is a wealth of fantastic content being produced. The big hits of last year were Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale and HBO's Big Little Lies, which both cleaned up at the Emmy Awards. The latter was originally meant to be a limited series, although its wild success inspired the network to renew BLL for a second season. Season 2's contents are largely a mystery, although it was recently announced that the great Meryl Streep will be playing a role when Big Little Lies returns. Now star and producer Nicole Kidman has opened up about the process, saying:

Reese and I were just [thinking], 'She would be so amazing in the role!' We didn't think we'd get her. It was written for her and we wanted her.

It looks like Meryl Streep's upcoming Big Little Lies stint is a role that was made just for her. This is enough to excite most cinephiles, and makes the anticipation around the show's sophomore run even stronger.

When Big Little Lies eventually returns for Season 2, Meryl Streep will be playing the role of Mary Louise Wright, the mother of Alexander Skarsgard's late character Perry. She will likely enter Monterey in the wake of Perry's death, and likely try to piece together her son's final moments. With the five women attempting to keep their secret (and innocence) after Bonnie accidentally killed the abuser, it seems that things are about to get very tense.

In her same conversation with Entertainment Tonight, Nicole Kidman spoke about what it meant to have Meryl Streep join Big Little Lies' second season. Because Kidman believes that Streep's enthusiasm is a message of support for female stories and producers, she's going to make sure that the living legend enjoys her time onset. Kidman said,

It really is her standing up and going, 'I support you as women, and I believe in you.' I think that's a big statement from her. We're determined to give her an extraordinary experience. She's had a lot of experiences so we just want to make it fun for her and vibrant and exciting.

Now the question is: where exactly will Big Little Lies go narratively when it returns? While the stunning Season 1 finale saw the women finally uniting and enjoying each other, the watching eyes of Detective Adrienne Quinlan seemed to spy on the ladies. The motley crew of characters will have to keep a very big secret, which will no doubt bring their tension to a boiling point-- especially when Perry's mother comes calling.

It's currently unclear when Big Little Lies will return for Season 2, but check back with CinemaBlend for more updates. In the meantime, check out our midseason premiere list to plan your next binge watch, and our cancellation list to see if your favorite show got the chop last year.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.