Meryl Streep has signed on to star in "Dirty Tricks", a behind-the-scenes look at the Watergate scandal that brought down former US President Richard Nixon, Variety reported.

Streep will play Martha Mitchell, the whistle-blowing wife of Nixon chief of staff John Mitchell, in a movie that focuses on the role of women in the scandal.

Annette Bening will play White House correspondent Helen Thomas, the recipient of many of Mitchell's leaks, while Gwyneth Paltrow will play Maureen Dean, the wife of presidential legal counsel John Dean.

Jill Clayburgh will play First Lady Pat Nixon, who grew to loathe Mitchell for destabilising the presidency.

The story will focus on the high price paid by the eccentric Mitchell, after the Republicans resorted to dirty tricks to silence her after her husband divorced her and took their kids.