Meryl Streep Dustin Hoffman Conflict (Photo Credit – Prime Video)
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“In [one] scene, he slapped me.” Meryl Streep never forgot what happened on the set of Kramer vs. Kramer, and neither did Hollywood.
The 1979 Oscar-winning drama was brutal behind the scenes. Streep found herself opposite Dustin Hoffman, an already established name, in a story about a bitter divorce and custody battle. But Hoffman took method acting to an unsettling level, pushing Streep in ways that left a lasting impression.
During filming, Hoffman allegedly slapped Streep without warning before a pivotal scene. She later revealed (via NYT), “This is tricky because when you’re an actor, you’re in a scene, you have to feel free. I’m sure that I have inadvertently hurt people in physical scenes. But there’s a certain amount of forgiveness in that. But this was my first movie, and it was my first take in my first movie, and he just slapped me. And you see it in the movie. It was overstepping.”
That wasn’t the only time Hoffman crossed a line. Reports suggest he taunted Streep right before an emotional courtroom scene by whispering “John Cazale” – the name of her late partner, who had died the year before. It was a cruel attempt to stir real grief into her performance.
During another heated moment, Hoffman allegedly warned the camera operator before unexpectedly smashing a wine glass in front of her. Streep’s stunned reaction? Completely real. “Next time you do that, I’d appreciate you letting me know,” she reportedly told him afterward.
Hoffman’s behavior extended beyond Streep. Actress Gail Strickland, originally cast as Margaret, was reportedly so rattled by him that she had to be replaced by Jane Alexander. The atmosphere on set was as volatile as the film itself.
Kramer vs. Kramer went on to sweep the 52nd Academy Awards, winning five Oscars, including Best Actor for Hoffman and Best Supporting Actress for Streep. But the experience stuck with her.
“In [one] scene, he slapped me,” Streep told CBS News in 2011. “When I see the movie [now], I see the imprint of his hand on [my face]—not in the take that they used, but I still see the hand in the previous take…I think [Hoffman is] very, very gifted, [but] it wasn’t the most fun I’ve ever had on film.”
Hoffman never directly addressed the slap or the mind games. However, journalist Michael Schulman’s biography Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep suggested that he saw it as a way to fuel her performance. Method or not, it blurred the line between acting and real-life cruelty.
Hollywood has long debated where to draw the line between commitment and abuse. Kramer vs. Kramer remains an iconic film, but its legacy isn’t just about awards; it’s about what happened when the cameras weren’t rolling.
