The Margaret Thatcher biopic, which also stars Jim Broadbent and Richard E. Grant, is directed by Phyllida Lloyd ("Mamma Mia!") from a screenplay by Abi Morgan. "The Iron Lady" centers on the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, played by Streep, with a focus on the price she paid for power. Also in the cast are Alexandra Roach, Harry Lloyd, Olivia Colman, Susan Brown, Roger Allam, Anthony Head, Julian Wadham, Nick Dunning and David Westhead.

Streep, who was announced as a 2011 Kennedy Center Honoree, was nominated for the Tony Award in 1976 for her performance in A Memory of Two Mondays / 27 Wagons Full of Cotton. She has also been seen on Broadway in Secret Service, The Cherry Orchard, Happy End and Trelawny of the "Wells." She has won Academy Awards for "Sophie's Choice" and "Kramer vs. Kramer." Her other film credits include "Doubt," "The Devil Wears Prada," "Julie & Julia," "Mamma Mia!" and "It's Complicated," among others.