Meryl Streep will receive the 2023 Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts for her emblematic career as an actress

Actress Meryl Streep has been awarded the 2023 Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts. The jury thus recognizes an unparalleled career, which has a record of 21 Oscar nominations, of which it has achieved three. The first of them was achieved by the role of a mother separated from her in ‘Kramer vs Kramer’ (1979). The second was for ‘Sophie’s decision’ (1982), where she also played a mother who must choose one of her children at the entrance to a Nazi death camp, and the third for her incarnation of Margareth Thatcher in ‘The iron lady’ (2011).

The minutes of the jury, which unanimously awarded him the prize, highlighted: ‘Over five decades, Meryl Streep has developed a brilliant career chaining performances in which she gives life to rich and complex female characters, which invite reflection and the formation of the viewer’s critical spirit. The honesty and responsibility in the choice of their works, at the service of inspiring and exemplary narratives, go beyond the screen and the stages with an impeccable acting technique, armed only with their gestures, voice and gaze.’

In her career there are memorable titles that make her a film legend, such as ‘The Hunter’ (1978), ‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ (1981), ‘A Scream in the Dark’ (1988), ‘The Bridges of Madison’ (1995), ‘Marvin’s room’, (1996) or ‘The Pentagon files’ (2017). Like no other actress, she embodies the idea of ​​prestige and credibility, and yet this has not led her to give up more commercial roles such as ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ (2006) or ‘Mamma Mia!’ (2008). The members of the jury, among whom was the actress Cayetana Guillén Cuervo, also highlighted that she is deserving of this award for ‘Dignifying the art of acting and ensuring that ethics and coherence transcend through her work, with the virtue to underline that human beings, and specifically women, must beat and stand out from their singularity, from their difference’.

The candidacy of the 73-year-old actress has been imposed on 43 other names of 20 different nationalities. Take over filmmaker like Luis García Berlanga (1986), Woody Allen (2002), Pedro Almodóvar (2006), Francis Ford Coppola (2015) or Martin Scorsese (2018), to the soundtrack composers Ennio Morricone and John Williams (2020). In addition, the Princess of Asturias Foundation has also recognized artists such as Marina Abramovic (2021), the playwright Peter Brook (2019), the singer Carmen Linares (2022) or the architects Oscar Niemeyer (1989), Norman Foster (2009) and Frank Gehry. (2014).

Meryl Streep is the only actress to have won the award so far along with Núria Espert, who did so in 2016. The award will be presented at the 43rd edition of the Princess of Asturias Awards, which will be held at the Campoamor Theater in Oviedo next October.