Meryl Streep's representative has stated the actress made "no contribution" to a new biography, which details an alleged physical altercation with her Kramer vs. Kramer co-star Dustin Hoffman.
In author Michael Schulman's upcoming biography, Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep, he reveals the veteran actress, who won an Oscar for her role in the 1979 drama, had a tense feud with Dustin, especially while filming an emotional scene between their characters.
In an excerpt published in Vanity Fair on Tuesday (29Mar16), Schulman writes Meryl was fiercely fighting to make her character Joanna more sympathetic, but Dustin reportedly grew tired of her complaints, pushing her to get on with the script as written.
Their encounters became personal, with Dustin allegedly taunting her about her then-recently deceased boyfriend, filmmaker John Cazale.
"He (Dustin) was goading her and provoking her," Kramer vs. Kramer producer, Richard Fischoff says in the biography. "Hoffman was using stuff that he knew about her personal life and about John to get the response that he thought she should be giving in the performance."
Schulman adds their interaction became physical, writing, "They were shooting the opening scene, when Ted follows the hysterical Joanna into the hallway. They shot the bulk of it in the morning and, after lunch, set up for some reaction shots. Dustin and Meryl took their positions on the other side of the apartment door. Then something happened that shocked not just Meryl but everyone on set.
"Right before their entrance, Dustin slapped her hard across the cheek, leaving a red mark," but Schulman says Streep continued to film the scene.
However, a spokesperson for Meryl has responded to Schulman's story, insisting she has nothing to do with the tome and did not give her blessing for the biography.
A statement reads: "Ms. Streep has no comment on this book. It was unauthorized. She made no contribution to it, nor has she read it."
While Meryl has not commented on the story, Dustin has previously admitted he was in a bad place during the filming of the Oscar-winning movie, telling The Hollywood Reporter, "I was getting divorced, I was partying with drugs and it depleted me in every way."
