Kidman, Streep and Moore Sign For Daldry

Sam Mendes better watch out. Wunderkind director Stephen Daldry is hard at work preparing for his second film, The Hours, and has begun by signing a cast that puts the American Beauty director's in the shade. Empire Online last reported in August that Daldry was pursuing Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore for the film. When we caught up with Daldry in Paris at the European Film Awards this weekend, he confirmed that the three leading ladies had signed on the dotted line. 'It starts shooting at the end of January,' Daldry told us. 'It's the story of three women in different places and different time periods who are trying to define their identity in a world that wants to see them behave slightly differently. Nicole Kidman plays Virginia Wolf, Julianne Moore is in 1950's LA and Meryl Streep is in New York now.' Filming will be mainly at Pinewood, with a little bit on location in America and London.