Streep, the winner of two Oscars and nominated a record 14 times, will star opposite Amy Adams in the film, which is due to begin filming next year. Adams was recently nominated for a Critics Choice Award for her work in Enchanted.
The movie features Adams as a temp who embarks on a bid to cook each one of the 524 recipes in Child’s famous 1961 cook book Mastering the Art of French Cooking in the space of a year.
The film is based on Julie Powell’s best-selling book, Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen.
It will be directed by Nora Ephron who also directed You’ve Got Mail and Sleepless in Seattle.
Child died just short of her 92nd birthday in 2004 after a long career as one of America’s most famous culinary celebrities.
She is often credited with introducing French cuisine and cooking techniques to a mainstream audience through her books and television programmes.