Back in 1992, the dark comedy ‘Death Becomes Her‘ turned plastic surgery nightmares into cinematic art. But according to Meryl Streep, the real drama wasn’t about some magic potion. It was about a red car and someone being late all the time.
In a new interview, Streep, now 76, finally explained why she “had a beef” with her co-star Goldie Hawn, 80, while they were filming Robert Zemeckis’ cult classic.
Meryl Streep on Goldie Hawn Feud
On screen, Streep and Hawn’s characters were locked in a nasty fight over Bruce Willis’s character. But off-screen, things weren’t so dark. They were just… punctual.
Related: This One Decision by Meryl Streep Rewrote Her ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ Deal Overnight
“Goldie, she was always late to set,” Streep told Vanity Fair. The three-time Oscar winner said her own strict work ethic didn’t match Hawn’s easygoing style. “But she was so adorable. And I’m always on time, you know, and annoying.”
Streep painted a funny picture of why she got annoyed. Hawn would show up looking great and carefree. “She had a red convertible, I remember, and she’d drive herself to set,” Streep said. “She had her hair all… ‘Oh gosh, sorry!’ And everybody thought, ‘Oh, she’s so cute.’ Yeah. So I had a beef with her.”
Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn Became Buddies Despite the Late Arrivals
However, Streep made it clear that this “beef” didn’t last long. In the end, the two became good friends. “I loved her. I love her,” Streep said. “She’s one of my buddies, and over the years, we’ve had some laughs about that movie because people love it. I thought it was like a documentary on Beverly Hills.”
In case you missed it: Meryl Streep Finally Sets the Record Straight on Miranda Priestly’s Real-Life Muse From ‘The Devil Wears Prada’
The lateness wasn’t the only hard part of making the movie. The film won an Oscar for visual effects, but Streep said the process was awful. She talked about how hard it was to film those twisted neck scenes with green screens.
“I remember being in a green spandex suit that encompassed my whole body, and then little pins being stuck in it,” she told the magazine. “Tedious is kind of a little word for what it is. It’s excruciating.”
Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn’s On-Screen Chemistry
For Streep, acting with Hawn was a different story. “When we get to the scene and we just do the scene all silly and fabulous, me with Goldie, we just laughed,” Streep said. Hawn’s famous laugh often ruined takes. “She’s the best laugher in America, really. She laughs like, ‘Ahahaha!’ And then they have to stop shooting.”
So even though there was that early beef over the red convertible, these two legends are still a big part of 90s movie history. And Streep says it’s all forgiven, mostly because now, years later, she just thinks the whole thing is funny.
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