One can only wonder if an Oscar nomination for Meryl Streep is more or less automatic these days. She has the all-time record with 19 tips of the Academy's hat to date, and she has an intriguing role coming up in Jonathan Demme's “Ricki and the Flash” that will surely bring her at least into the conversation yet again.

Then again, maybe it's not so automatic. Streep crushed it in Demme's own remake of “The Manchurian Candidate” a little over a decade ago, but where Angela Lansbury was able to make it to the dance for originating the role, Streep didn't make the cut. I'm sure fellow supporting actress players like Laura Linney (“Kinsey”) and Sophie Okondeo (“Hotel Rwanda”) were happy to have the wiggle room.

Anyway, the first image from “Ricki and the Flash” has been revealed (see above), courtesy of People. In the movie, which was written by Diablo Cody (“Juno,” “Young Adult”), Streep stars as an aging rock star who abandoned her family to become a famous musician. She gets a last chance to put things right when her ex-husband asks her to visit Chicago and helpt their estranged, divorced daughter through a difficult time.

The last time Demme's work found some love in the season was 2008's “Rachel Getting Married,” which netted Anne Hathaway a Best Actress nod and probably should have netted a supporting one for Rosemarie DeWitt as well.

The only thing a little odd about this project, though, is the release date. Sometimes early August releases work out for awards season, sometimes not. But if it's not a film that needs the festivals to build momentum and it can make a splash at the end of the summer, so be it.

“Ricki and the Flash” hits theaters Aug. 6.