Meryl Streep joins second season of Big Little Lies

Remote video URL
Triple Oscar winner Meryl Streep will star opposite Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman in the show that won plaudits for tackling domestic violence. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

NEW YORK (AFP) - Meryl Streep will star in Big Little Lies' season two, US cable network HBO announced on Wednesday, generating another boost for a hit drama already basking in awards glory.

The triple Oscar winner will star opposite Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman in the show that won plaudits for tackling domestic violence at a time when US society is increasingly focused on its treatment of women.

Streep will play the grieving mother of Perry, a character played by Alexander Skarsgard, who died at the end of season one after being unmasked as a wife beater.

Streep's character will search for answers after her son's death, HBO announced.

Best known for her work in cinema, she won an Emmy for her performance in HBO mini-series Angels In America in 2003.

On Tuesday, Streep broke her own Oscar nomination record with her 21st nod for her role as Washington Post publisher Katherine Graham in The Post.

Big Little Lies tells the story of three California mothers in the uber-wealthy enclave of Monterey, California, whose seemingly perfect lives disguise behind-the-scenes jealousy, secrets and drama.

It won four Golden Globes, including for best TV movie or limited series and three acting gongs for Kidman as an abused wife, Skarsgard and Laura Dern, who plays a mother trying to find out who is bullying her daughter.

It also walked off with eight Emmy awards including Outstanding Limited Series, as well as individual gongs for its Oscar-winning stars Kidman and Witherspoon.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.