Katharine Hepburn stands head and shoulders above her peers as the person with the most Oscar wins for acting. As an era-defining leading lady and someone who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, she paved the way for other female actors, such as Meryl Streep, to be taken seriously in the entertainment industry and treated with the respect they deserve. As Hollywood is prone to do, though, Streep’s rise to the top of the acting field saw her draw many comparisons to Hepburn — both because of their outspoken nature and their collection of accolades. While Streep hasn’t exceeded Hepburn’s Oscar wins, she managed to almost double the nominations received.
According to A. Scott Berg’s 2003 biography of Hepburn titled “Kate Remembered,” the screen queen shared many thoughts about the state of Hollywood at the time and the caliber of the actors, including Streep. Reportedly, Hepburn raved about the likes of Julia Roberts, Sally Field, John Travolta, and Harrison Ford, but she didn’t hold such a high opinion of Streep — quite the contrary, in fact. “Meryl Streep was her least favorite modern actress on screen,” Berg wrote. “‘Click, click, click,’ she said, referring to the wheels turning inside her head.”
Hepburn died in June 2003, so it would have been interesting to see if her opinion of Streep would have changed in the future, considering the career and achievements that the latter has had since then.
