Olivia Cooke and Robin Wright have done their fair share of playing mischievous women on television, Cooke as Alicent Hightower in HBO’s House of the Dragon and Wright as Claire Underwood in House of Cards. In their new Prime Video series, The Girlfriend, the two once again get to tap into their devious side, playing an unrelenting mother and a persistent girlfriend, both willing to stop at nothing to pull someone they love away from the other person.
**Spoilers ahead for all six episodes of The Girlfriend, now streaming on Prime Video**
While the show takes a double-pronged approach by showing the series of events from both Laura’s (Wright) and Cherry’s (Cooke) points of view, it quickly becomes clear that neither one of these women are innocent in their pursuit of protecting and taking care of Daniel (Laurie Davidson). How they execute their goal of prying Daniel from the hands of the other, well, that’s the questionable part. It’s safe to say these ladies are up to no good.
“It felt good,” Cooke told DECIDER of getting to play another character audiences may end up loving to hate. “I think what’s great about both of these characters you see, it’s so far from how I would operate. And as myself, who operates under the guise of a lot of guilt and shame, to sort of rid myself of that and be as raw of a nerve as possible is fantastic.”
To get into character, however, the two actresses shared that it takes a lot of trust in the role that one is playing, which requires putting aside questions about the decision-making skills of the person their character. To tap into these roles, that means liking and relating to the woman that they are bringing to life… even when it might not be easy.
“You have to like the character you play, no matter how evil they are. You have to believe in their choices and their psychology behind why these decisions are made. Whether you’re white lying, exaggerating the truth, boldfaced lying, or doing something as horrible and deceptive that Laura does to Cherry.”
Cooke added of having some distance from the show since filming, “I can completely understand the two sides of the story and two versions of the story, but I think when you’re in it, I have to only believe and empathize with my character. Otherwise, it becomes a bit murky and unbelievable.”
Murky may be an understatement. The series sees Cooke’s character doing everything from casually poking around Laura’s personal belongings to putting animal intestines into the wedding cake of her ex-boyfriend. Wright’s character is not much better, meddling in her son’s love life to the extreme by telling Cherry that Daniel died after their hiking accident.
It’s a slippery slope, albeit one that starts out innocently enough for each of their characters. For Cherry, that means scoping out what Laura’s clothes look like while in her house with Daniel, which just so happens to be Cooke’s favorite transgression — and the one she finds most relatable as someone who is too curious for their own good.
“Snooping, I think that’s my favorite. I love a snoop, I think we all love a snoop. I wouldn’t go to the extent where I’m trying on my mother-in-law’s outfits and stuff, but, if you’re sat at someone’s desk, I’ll definitely look through the drawers and see what’s inside,” Cooke said. “I can’t help it. I can’t help it. I’m really nosy. And then, the worst one.”
She added of where her character crossed a line, “I mean, the worst one is defiling your gallery, I think. [That’s] Just like your livelihood.” Mother-in-laws, they bring out the worst in all of us!
The Girlfriend is now streaming on Prime Video.