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Meryl Streep loved shooting intimate scene with Robert Redford: 'Didn't want it to end'
At Cannes film festival 2024, Oscar-winning actor Meryl Streep recalled shooting an 'intimate' scene with actor Robert Redford in the film, Out of Africa.
Actor Meryl Streep feels the shampoo scene with co-star Robert Redford in her classic film, Out of Africa (1985), can be called a ‘sex scene’ due to its intimate nature. At the 77th edition of Cannes film festival, the actor confessed that she didn’t want it to end. (Also read: Meryl Streep honoured in emotional ceremony as Cannes opens)
During an onstage conversation at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival on May 15, the 74-year-old actor reflected on the famous scene in Out of Africa in which Robert shampoos her hair.
Her favourite scene till date
“It’s a sex scene in a way, because it’s so intimate. We’ve seen so many scenes of people fucking, but we don’t see that loving touch, that care,” Meryl said leading to a huge applause.
Meryl went on to recall that filming the scene wasn't very pleasant. The actor revealed that she and Robert, now 87, were warned by the production to be wary of potentially dangerous wild animals nearby.
“The animal that kills the most men in Africa is the hippopotamus, especially when you come between them and the river,” Meryl said.
And they were shooting in the river, with “hippopotamus right above it”. Meryl said that the warning made Robert nervous who couldn’t shampoo her hair perfectly, saying “It was not good”.
She went on to reveal that her longtime hair and makeup artist Roy Hellund took Robert aside and helped him by sharing a few pointers. That’s when his game improved significantly. "By take five I was so in love! I didn’t want it to end that day, even in spite of the hippos," she said.
About the scene
In the romantic drama, Meryl starred as a Danish baroness who falls in love with a big game hunter, played by Robert, while running a coffee plantation in South Africa. In the memorable scene, Robert tenderly washes Meryl's hair by a river while reciting lines from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
Directed by Sydney Pollack, Out of Africa was based on Karen Blixen's 1937 autographical book of the same name. The film was a box office hit and got 11 Oscar nominations, including a best actress nod for Meryl. It took home seven Oscars, including best picture and best director for Pollack.
Meryl’s Cannes outing
On Tuesday, Meryl was awarded an honorary Palme d’Or at the festival’s opening ceremony. She was greeted by a two-minute standing ovation. She became emotional before delivering a heartfelt speech reflecting on her decades-long career.
In her speech, she recalled the last time when she was at Cannes, saying, “I was already a mother of three, I was about to turn 40 and I thought that my career was over”.
“That was not an unrealistic expectation for actresses at that time. And the only reason that I’m here tonight and that it continued is because of the very gifted artists with whom I’ve worked,” she added.
