They say ‘a mother’s love knows no bounds’ and that theory is put to the test, this week, when one devoted matriarch wages war on her son’s suspicious new flame in Prime Video’s The Girlfriend.
Based on Michelle Frances’ novel of the same name, the six-part psychological thriller stars Golden Globe winner Robin Wright – best known for playing Jenny in classic movie Forrest Gump and, more recently, Claire in Netflix’s political thriller House of Cards – as Laura, a gallery owner who seems to have it all: a glittering career, loving husband Howard (Gangs of London’s Waleed Zuaiter), and precious son, Daniel (The Road Trip’s Laurie Davidson), who’s a doctor. Laura’s seemingly perfect world is turned upside down, however, when Daniel brings home Cherry (House of the Dragon’s Olivia Cooke).
After an awkward first meeting, Laura’s convinced Cherry isn’t who she says she is and is determined to prove it. Although no one else can see what she sees, Laura refuses to watch Daniel be deceived and will stop at nothing to protect him.
Here, Robin – who also directs – and Olivia, tell us more…
Olivia: “Cherry’s a working class woman from London who has a lot of ambition, which is reflected in who she dates. When Cherry goes on the defensive, she tells little white lies – or even big ones – about who she is and where she’s from, which soon arouses suspicion in Laura.”
Robin: “There’s always that ongoing battle as a mother that nobody’s ever going to be good enough for your son and, as Laura’s suspicions about Cherry start to increase, she just wants to get to the bottom of things. But is Cherry a manipulative social climber? Or is Laura just a paranoid, possessive mum?”
Each episode explores events from both Cherry and Laura’s point of view of how things happened. What does this dynamic add to the show?
Robin: “It’s all a matter of perspective, with the whole show questioning whose perspective is the most reliable. For instance, was Laura rolling her eyes at Cherry? Or was she just looking at a cobweb on the ceiling? Often there are subtle nuances and, as both sides play out, it’s the audience who gets to decide who’s in the wrong. Viewers will switch from Cherry’s team, to Laura’s team, then back again. It’s more of a cat-and-cat thriller, than a cat-and-mouse thriller!”
Olivia: “That’s right. Getting to play all of those juicy nuances in someone else’s point of view was really enticing to me – but I found it SO confusing doing the dual perspective, so I don’t know how Robin managed to act and direct it! Once, we were filming these really intense scenes; Robin’s crying was so raw and emotional but then she’d just snap out of it and say: ‘…And cut! Right, we’re gonna go into a mid-shot now, what lens are you using? Okay, let’s go.’ We were astounded by her dexterity. It was incredible to witness.”
Caught in the middle of this two-way tension is Daniel, played by The Road Trip’s Laurie Davidson. How does Daniel navigate having these two women in his life? And did Laurie enjoy having the two of you fighting over him?
Olivia: “Ha, ha! Laurie’s a deep thinker, especially when he’s preparing for a scene, he needs quiet. So I don’t think having two dynamic, powerful women at his side, hissing, would bode well for him at all! For Daniel, all you want is for your family to love your partner as much as you do so the fact Laura and Cherry don’t get along is a huge point of contention for him. In the beginning, Laura and Cherry really do try, in their own way, to bond but it’s short-lived.”
Robin: “In the perfect world, Cherry and Laura would have been BFFs, because they’re very much alike in many ways – but it’s almost like you hate the thing that you are in other people. Daniel loves both women but he’s locked into this clutch his mum has over him… and Cherry is, slowly but surely, trying to pull him out of it!”
Robin, as a mother of two, can you relate to Laura [Robin has a daughter, Dylan Frances Penn, 34, and son, Hopper Jack Penn, 32]?
Robin: “With my son, I’m often like: ‘What are you doing? Where are you going? What’s her name? What size dress is she? So I’ve asked him to let me know once he’s seen the show, am I too much like Laura? Am I THAT annoying? Because maybe I need to back off!’”
What was your most memorable or challenging scene of The Girlfriend to film?
Olivia: “On film sets, we try to control every single element, but you can’t control nature, which was interesting when we had to film some scenes on a yacht in the middle of the ocean.”
Robin: “We had several boats around us – the safety boat, the camera boat, the crane boat – and our yacht was anchored, but it was spinning, so there were many times we got the safety boat in the shot and had to reshoot it. It was hell for the crew but we eventually got the scenes in the can.”
Olivia: “When everything’s going wrong, but you’re still getting the shots, it’s adrenalising. However, like Cherry, I do get very seasick. So I’d taken lots of meds that morning because I thought: ‘I can’t be the only one to be flat on my back for the whole day’. I’ve experienced seasickness plenty of times in my life, so I didn’t need to act too much!”
The Girlfriend is on Prime Video now.