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Meryl Streep got candid about the time she and Cher saved a woman from being attacked on the street while speaking at the International Press Freedom Awards in New York on Wednesday to honor female journalists.

She first thanked journalists for putting themselves in the “first line of defense against tyranny and state-sanctioned news.” The actress continued on to share that she has experienced physical violence before, once on her own and another time with Cher.

“In one instance, I played dead and waited until the blows stopped — watching like people say you do from about 50 feet above from where I was beaten,” Streep says. “And in the second instance, someone else was being abused and I just went completely nuts and went after this man. Ask Cher — she was there. And the thug ran away, it was a miracle.”

Cher divulged the story herself to Us Weekly including “Meryl Streep and I saved a girl from a large mugger in New York City” as part of the magazine’s story “25 Things You Don’t know About Me.”

Streep and Cher appeared in the 1983 film “Silkwood” together. The duo will reunite on the big screen for “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again,” scheduled for release next year.