On Wednesday, Reese attended the New York City premiere of Big Little Lies Season 2! Reese was joined on the red carpet by her female co-stars, writer David E. Kelly and executive producer Jean-Marc Vallee – and Ava! Reese looked chic in a strapless print dress by Elie Saab, with Salvatore Ferragamo heels and De Beers and Taffin jewellery. On the red carpet, Reese talked about Meryl Streep joining the cast, why they did a season 2, whether there will be a season 3, and having Ava on the red carpet with her.

There are lots of videos below for you to watch, and find the first few hundred high quality photos in the Gallery. There are some great shots of all the cast, and of Reese with Ava – and I particularly like the after party pictures with Laura Dern and Adam Scott! Stay tuned for many more photos…

Big thanks to our friend Maria at Starring Kathryn Newton for being amazing 😀

• “Big Little Lies” Season 2 New York Premiere x212

‘Big Little Lies’ Cast Geeks Out Over Meryl Streep: ‘It Was Like Meeting the Queen of England’

The team behind “Big Little Lies” had a lot to celebrate on Wednesday evening: the premiere of the new season of their critically-acclaimed show, reuniting with each other on the red carpet of the New York City event and, oh, Meryl Streep.

Streep, who’s said she joined Season 2 of “Big Little Lies” without even reading a script, posed for photos with Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Zoe Kravitz and the rest of the cast, before she was whisked away, smiling at reporters, to head into the screening at Jazz at Lincoln Center, where she was shouting names from the audience to ensure HBO boss Casey Bloys thanked all the actors on the show.

While Streep didn’t chat too much with press, the rest of her cast seized the moment to rave about her during interviews.

When asked what is the biggest change to the second season, which premieres June 9, Kathryn Newton, who plays Witherspoon’s daughter on the series, exclaimed, “Meryl Streep!”

Streep, who already has three Emmys among her avalanche of awards, will be playing the mother to Alexander Skarsgård’s character, who was murdered at the end of the first season of the HBO hit. If the trailer is any indication, Streep’s character does not get along with Kidman’s Celeste or Witherspoon’s Madeline.

“I approve,” Skarsgård quipped when asked his reaction to Streep playing his on-screen mother. He joked, “I had casting approval and I said, ‘Yeah, Meryl can play my mom. That’s alright. She works. She’ll do.’”

Skarsgård has not seen the episodes yet — and stayed mum on whether he’ll appear in flashbacks — but he revealed he has read scripts for the entire season, and confirmed Streep’s arrival shakes things up. “I’m very excited for people to see it — the way she comes into the dynamic of the group and asking some hard questions. It creates a lot of tension and it’s great drama.”

Merrin Dungey, who plays the detective that’ll be looking into the murder cliffhanger, wouldn’t reveal whether she shares scenes with Streep, fearing she’d give away her storyline, but Denis O’Hare, who plays a new character this season — a lawyer — hinted that he may be involved in Streep’s on-screen scheme.

“I share a lot of scenes with Meryl Streep,” O’Hare says. “And I have a pretty intense scene with Nicole [Kidman].”

Laura Dern, who stars as Renata on the series, said the first day with Streep was like a dream, explaining the on-set vibe “like you’re a little girl dreaming of becoming an actor and working with Meryl Streep. That’s where I dreamt as a child and it’s a great extraordinary gift to have come true.”

When asked what she took away from working alongside Streep, Dern said, “What an incredible teammate she is. Her goal is to make all the stories, even if she’s not a part of those stories, resonate and remain honest and relatable — and that is a great lesson and reminder.”

When Adam Scott, who plays Witherspoon’s husband, first met Streep, Dern helped out her co-star, who told Variety, “I still can’t believe that I”m on a TV show that Meryl Streep is also on. That’s still weird.” He recalled, “The first time I met her was at the table read and she was so sweet and we chatted for just a second and she moved on to talk to someone else, and I was just sort of standing there, and immediately, Laura Dern came up to me and she was like, ‘I saw the whole thing. You did very well.’”

“Everyone knows, as an actor, you’re waiting your whole life to meet Meryl Streep, let alone work with Meryl Streep and be on a show with Meryl Streep,” Scott said, “It was as incredible as you would imagine.”

James Tupper, who plays Zoe Kravitz’s on-screen love interest, summed up Streep’s presence best. “I’ll be honest with you,” he said. “It was like meeting the Queen of England — you’re like, ‘Your majesty.’”

(Variety)

Big Little Lies Cast Bonded With Meryl Streep Over Carbs and Wine

The members of the “Monterey Five”—Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, and Zoë Kravitz—have officially welcomed Meryl Streep to the Big Little Lies family. All five actors reunited with the three-time Oscar winner at the show’s lavish season two premiere in New York on Wednesday night, where they debuted the episode that introduces Streep’s new character.

The cast couldn’t help but sing their new costar’s praises. “Working with Meryl Streep was the most exciting experience, and at the same time, it was so intimidating because she’s a legend,” said Witherspoon, who greeted Streep with a big hug on the arrivals carpet at Jazz at Lincoln Center. “I’ve been in the movie business for over 20 years, and there’s nobody else like her. She’s really the most amazing human being. She’s just the sweetest, most humble, honest, and fun-loving person.”

In the series, Streep plays the mother of Alexander Skarsgård’s deceased Perry, Mary Louise Wright—a character who was specifically written for and named after the Oscar winner. Perry, you may recall, died in season one after being pushed down a staircase. Mary Louise has arrived in the picturesque beach town of Monterey, California, to help her daughter-in-law, Celeste (Kidman), take care of her twin boys as they cope with the death of their father. Mary Louise, who doesn’t believe Perry simply lost his balance, is also looking for answers about his death—causing tension among the Monterey Five. As the nosey mother-in-law, Streep throws out zingers and says some harsh backhanded comments, which causes friction with Witherspoon’s no-nonsense character, Madeline.

“People will quickly discover our characters don’t like each other, and there’s quite an amount of scenes where we take each other on and say some mean and nasty words to each other,” said Witherspoon. “It just gets worse and worse. She has a lot of conflict with pretty much everybody on the whole show, and she’s fabulous. For me, it was such a thrill to do those scenes with her. I got to sit down with her, and we talked about the scenes and worked on the script, and it was like, ‘I can’t believe this is happening!’”

Kidman, who also shares numerous scenes with Streep, said working with her was a “master class in acting.”

“She shows up on set never late, and she’s ready to work,” said Kidman, who previously starred in 2002’s The Hours with Streep. “I love that she likes to work. She works so hard, and acting is still her love and passion. She’s such a pro, and transparent with her vision and all her emotions with her work. Every day she inspired us.”

Kidman is also in awe of how the prolific actress has gracefully handled fame.

“I admire how she has navigated both her personal life and her public life and everything,” said the Oscar winner. “Look at her—she’s a shining example of what a human being can be.”

As the newest member of the cast, Streep quickly bonded with her costars. Kidman said Streep “immediately fit in and joined the gang,” while Witherspoon revealed that Streep attended intimate dinners with her peers off set.

“We may have had a glass of wine or two at dinner,” said Witherspoon, laughing. “She’d come out to dinner with us. We had pizza and pasta dinners, and she’d tell us all her stories about her career and her life. It was an incredible experience just listening to her, and we had so much fun. When the girls get together, we are just laughing all the time.”

Dern echoed Witherspoon: “I’m not sure most people know this, but Meryl is so funny. She has a great sense of humor,” she said. “She’s so smart, witty, and funny. She tells the funniest stories.”

For Woodley, getting to know Streep during those dinners and on set was an experience she will never forget.

“She immediately disarms you with her generosity,” said Woodley. “She’s kind of like a superhero. Her power is being able to be real in every moment and situation. You forget that she is this incredible actress, and you get to know her as a person who is kind and empathetic. There’s a reason why she’s the best.”

(Vanity Fair)

Reese Witherspoon, doppelganger daughter Ava steal the show at ‘Big Little Lies’ premiere

For the stars of “Big Little Lies,” Wednesday’s Season 2 premiere was a family affair.

Reese Witherspoon arrived with daughter Ava Phillippe, 19, where the two were all smiles as they walked the blue carpet at New York’s Jazz at Lincoln Center. Nicole Kidman, meanwhile, was joined by country singer husband Keith Urban, taking a night off from his ongoing tour.

“Thank you to all our families,” Kidman said before the screening of the second-season opener, which airs on HBO June 9 (9 EDT/PDT). “Anyone in this room who works really hard knows that if you have a supportive family, it makes it so much easier.”

Witherspoon paid tribute to her “incredible partnership” with Kidman, her fellow “Lies” executive producer who together helped reassemble the star-studded cast for seven new episodes.

“It all began with one phone call between two friends,” Witherspoon said. “The show is really a testament to the power of female friendship, so I’m enormously proud.”

The Emmy-winning drama promises more wine, more Amabella and more hilariously withering put-downs in its scandalous second season, many courtesy of new cast member Meryl Streep.

Streep plays the prickly, grieving mother-in-law to Kidman’s Celeste, whose abusive husband Perry (Alexander Skarsgard) was suspiciously killed in the Season 1 finale. Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley and Zoe Kravitz are all back as disparate moms brought together after witnessing his murder, while also harboring dark secrets of their own.

(USA Today)

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