The Girlfriend Star Robin Wright Breaks Silence on That Shocking Ending — and Who Really Called the Shots
Fresh from directing and executive producing the six-part thriller, Wright gives RadioTimes.com an inside look at how it was made.
Prime Video's twisty thriller 'The Girlfriend' did not exactly glide to that big final swing. Robin Wright says the ending was still being figured out while the team was already shooting. Not unheard of in TV, but for a finale this gnarly, that is some inside-baseball chaos.
They were still building the ending while rolling cameras
Wright told RadioTimes.com that the sixth episode was being shaped in real time as production started, and she does not sugarcoat how frantic it got.
'Episode six was being manifested while we were shooting episode one ... finishing it off was a bit of a scramble.'
The setup: two women, one battleground
Based on Michelle Frances' novel, the series centers on a brutal power struggle between wealthy London art dealer Laura (Wright) and her son's working-class girlfriend, Cherry (Olivia Cooke). Their first meeting goes south and never recovers, and it turns into a tug-of-war over Daniel (Laurie Davidson) that keeps escalating.
How the last showdown came together
The final face-off happens at Laura's very fancy London home, and the show makes it clear only one of them is leaving alive. Wright, who also directed, says the hard part was calibrating the suspense beat by beat. She described chasing 'waves' of tension: when to dip, when to spike, and when to give the audience a quick breath so you think 'oh, thank God that did not happen'... until it does.
Improv on the day, and a little chaos by design
Wright says the cast leaned into improvisation to find the right edges in that climax. She jokes she called Cooke and Davidson 'the kids' and had them play around in takes; sometimes she and Cooke would try different versions, and they would catch moments that felt like magic. She clearly likes working that way.
Expect a divisive finale
Wright thinks viewers will be surprised by where it lands, especially after six episodes of the show nudging you back and forth over whose side you are on. That push-pull is baked in. Cooke explained the approach to those dueling perspectives: it was all about what to dial up or down without breaking the characters. Even when you see them through the other's eyes, Cherry still has to feel like Cherry, and Laura still has to feel like Laura. Finding that balance often happened on the day, and pushing it to the edge without tipping over was a very thin line.
Who is who
- Robin Wright as Laura, a wealthy London art dealer (also directing episodes; known for 'House of Cards' and 'Wonder Woman')
- Olivia Cooke as Cherry, Daniel's working-class girlfriend
- Laurie Davidson as Daniel, the very stressed prize in the middle
- Based on the novel by Michelle Frances
'The Girlfriend' is streaming now on Prime Video.