WTF: Producer Wants Meryl Streep For 'The ExpendaBelles'

You'd think The Expendables producer Avi Lerner might look to certain names for his "all-female Expendables" offshoot film, which for now he's calling The ExpendaBelles. Sigourney Weaver, maybe, or Linda Hamilton.

But he's shooting for the moon, and he's trying to get there on starship Streep. Yep, Lerner says he's in talks with Meryl Streep to join his modern bacchae. Clearly he's a fan of The Iron Lady, and probably Hope Springs.

Lerner is reportedly also in talks with Cameron Diaz and Milla Jovovich to join the film. The latter is one that just about anyone would have pegged as an obvious choice for the film, and while one could argue that The Counselor won't make Diaz many fans, there's no question that the film will challenge any perception of the actress as soft or susceptible to intimidation.

As for Streep, maybe she got drunk with Helen Mirren one night and heard about how much fun it was to make Red. (Forget The ExpendaBelles; give me a movie that is just two hours of drunk Streep and Mirren, please.)

The news comes from an un-linked article in Bulgarian outlet the Standart, via Deadline. The same report says Lerner is on the hunt for a female director to helm the film, which was scripted by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith (Legally Blonde). One would think that if he can boast that Streep is definitely on board, he'll end up with a very different crop of interested candidates than might otherwise be the case.