LONDON: Meryl Streep feels sorry for young actresses - because the latest generation of stars is under too much pressure from the media. The Julie & Julia star is one of the most revered actresses of her generation, but she insists her first taste of fame was much easier to swallow than for today’s hottest celebrities. And she blames the focus put on the hard-partying antics of today’s performers for stifling their performances.

She tells Stylist magazine, “The world was different when I was a young actress. These days there’s so much scrutiny, everyone’s so self-aware, and that self-consciousness is the thing that kills your acting ability. What you look like, and how you seem, is all young actors consume themselves with, instead of their characters. It makes it so much harder to be fresh all the time.”