Robin Wright

Robin Gayle Wright[1] (born April 8, 1966) is an American actress and director. She is the recipient of eight Primetime Emmy Award nominations and has earned a Golden Globe Award and a Satellite Award for her work in television.

Robin Wright
Wright at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	Robin Gayle Wright April 8, 1966 Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Nationality	American
Other names	Robin Wright Penn
Occupation	Actress, director
Years active	1983–present
Spouse(s)	Dane Witherspoon ​ ​ (m. 1986; div. 1988)​ Sean Penn ​ ​ (m. 1996; div. 2010)​ Clément Giraudet ​ ​ (m. 2018)​
Children	2, including Dylan Penn
Relatives	Charlie Wright (nephew)

Wright first gained attention for her role in the NBC Daytime soap opera Santa Barbara, as Kelly Capwell from 1984 to 1988. She then made the transition to film, starring in the romantic comedy fantasy adventure film The Princess Bride (1987). This role led Wright to further success in the film industry, with starring roles in films such as Forrest Gump (1994), the romantic drama Message in a Bottle (1999), the superhero drama-thriller Unbreakable (2000), the historical drama The Conspirator (2010), the biographical sports drama Moneyball (2011), the mystery thriller The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), the biographical drama Everest (2015), the superhero film Wonder Woman (2017), and the neo-noir science fiction film Blade Runner 2049 (2017).

Wright starred as Claire Underwood in the Netflix political drama web television series House of Cards, for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 2013, making her the first actress to win a Golden Globe for a web television series. Wright has also received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations in the Outstanding Lead Actress category for House of Cards (one for each season), and two nominations in the Outstanding Drama Series category in 2016 and 2017 as a producer on the show.

Wright is also one of the highest paid actresses in the United States, earning US$420,000 per episode for her role in House of Cards in 2016.[2]

Early life

Wright was born in Dallas, Texas, to Gayle Gaston, a cosmetics saleswoman, and Freddie Wright, a pharmaceutical company employee.[1][3] Wright was raised in San Diego, California. She attended La Jolla High School in La Jolla and Taft High School in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles.[4]

Career

Wright began her career as a model, when she was 14.[5][6] At the age of 18, she played Kelly Capwell in the NBC Daytime soap opera Santa Barbara, for which she received several Daytime Emmy Award nominations.[7]

1980s–2000s: Transition into feature films

She transitioned into feature film work with a role in Hollywood Vice Squad in 1986, followed by her breakthrough role as Princess Buttercup in the cult film The Princess Bride in 1987. She gained critical acclaim in her role as Jenny Curran in Forrest Gump (1994), receiving Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild nominations for Best Supporting Actress.

In 1996 she starred in the lead role of the film adaptation of Daniel Defoe's Moll Flanders (1996), for which she received a Satellite Award Nomination for Best Actress in a Drama. She was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress for her role in She's So Lovely (1997), a film in which she co-starred with her then-husband Sean Penn. Wright received her third Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for her role in the television film Empire Falls (2005).

2013–2018: House of Cards

Wright attending the 2009 Cannes Film Festival

Since 2013, Wright has appeared in the Netflix political drama web television series House of Cards in the role of Claire Underwood, the ruthless wife of political mastermind Frank Underwood. On January 12, 2014, she won a Golden Globe for the role, becoming the first actress to win the award for an online-only web television series;[8] she was nominated for the same award the following year. She also received nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award in 2013 and 2014 for the same role. Following Season 4 in 2016, Wright stated that she felt Claire Underwood was the equal of Frank Underwood and demanded equal pay for her performance as her co-star Kevin Spacey; Netflix acquiesced.[9] In 2017, for her performance in the fifth season, Wright was nominated for her fifth consecutive Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. For the years 2014, 2016, and 2017, Wright received Best Actress in a Drama Series nominations for the Critics' Choice Television Awards, with her being the only nomination for the show in December 2017.

In October 2017, Wright was set as the show's new lead, following sexual misconduct allegations against Spacey, which resulted in him being fired from the sixth and final season. For her last appearance as Underwood, her performance was acclaimed - described as a "commanding performance [that] is more than enough to keep [the final season] standing strong" [10] - earning her her final nominations for the role at the Screen Actors Guild and Primetime Emmy Awards in 2019. For the latter, she became one of seven women to be nominated for the category six or more times for the same show (the first in 10 years since Mariska Hargitay for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit ).[11]

Further film work

In 2017, Wright played General Antiope in Wonder Woman (2017) and its 2020 sequel alongside Gal Gadot and Chris Pine. She appears in the Blade Runner sequel Blade Runner 2049 alongside Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, and Jared Leto.

In April 2019, it was announced that Wright would make her feature film directorial debut in the film Land.[12] Wright would also be starring as its lead, Edee Mathis, a lawyer who retreats in grief to the Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming. Sales for the film would start at Cannes the following month.[12] Filming began by October that year and the film was picked up by distributor Focus Features.[13]

Personal life

Wright with then-husband Sean Penn in September 2006

From 1986 to 1988, Wright was married to actor Dane Witherspoon, whom she met in 1984 on the set of the soap opera Santa Barbara.[14]

In 1989, Wright became involved with actor Sean Penn following his divorce from Madonna. Wright was offered the role of Maid Marian in the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, but turned it down because she was pregnant.[15] Their daughter, Dylan Frances, was born in April 1991.[16] She backed out of the role of Abby McDeere in The Firm (1993) due to her pregnancy with her second child,[4] and their son, Hopper Jack, was born in August 1993.[17]

After breaking up and getting back together,[18] Wright and Penn married in 1996. Their on-and-off relationship seemingly ended in divorce plans, announced in December 2007,[19] but the divorce petition was withdrawn four months later at the couple's request.[20] In February 2009, Wright and Penn attended the 81st Academy Awards together, at which Penn won Best Actor. Penn filed for legal separation in April 2009,[21] but withdrew the petition in May.[22] On August 12, 2009, Wright filed for divorce, declaring she had no plans to reconcile.[23][24][25] The divorce was finalized on July 22, 2010.[26]

In February 2012, Wright began dating actor Ben Foster,[27] and their engagement was announced in January 2014.[28] The couple called off their engagement in November 2014,[29] but reunited in January 2015.[30] On August 29, 2015, they announced they were ending their second engagement.[31] In 2017, Wright began dating Clément Giraudet, a Saint Laurent executive, and they secretly wed in August 2018 in La Roche-sur-le-Buis, France.[32]

Philanthropy and activism

Wright is the Honorary Spokesperson for the Dallas, Texas-based non-profit The Gordie Foundation.[33]

In 2014, Wright co-partnered with two California-based companies; Pour Les Femmes[34] and The SunnyLion.[35] The SunnyLion donates a portion of its profits to the Raise Hope For Congo movement.

Wright is an activist for human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. She is the narrator and executive producer of the documentary When Elephants Fight[36] which highlights how multinational mining corporations and politicians in the Democratic Republic of Congo threaten human rights, and perpetuate conflict in the region.[37] Wright is a supporter of Stand With Congo, the human rights campaign behind the film.[38] In 2016, she spoke publicly in support of the campaign at a film screening at the TriBeCa Film Institute in New York City,[39] in media interviews,[40][41][42][43] with journalists,[44][45][46] and across her social media accounts.[47][48][49]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986	Hollywood Vice Squad	Lori Stanton
1987	The Princess Bride	Buttercup	Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Actress
1990	Denial	Sara / Loon
1990	State of Grace	Kathleen Flannery
1992	The Playboys	Tara Maguire
1992	Toys	Gwen Tyler	Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
1994	Forrest Gump	Jenny Curran	Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
1995	The Crossing Guard	Jojo
1996	Moll Flanders	Moll Flanders	Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture
1997	Loved	Hedda Amerson	Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
1997	She's So Lovely	Maureen Murphy Quinn	Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
1998	Hurlyburly	Darlene
1999	Message in a Bottle	Theresa Osborne	Nominated – Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress – Drama/Romance
2000	How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog	Melanie McGowan
2000	Unbreakable	Audrey Dunn	Nominated – Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actress – Suspense
2001	The Pledge	Lori
2001	The Last Castle	Rosalie Irwin	Uncredited
2002	Searching for Debra Winger	Herself	Documentary
2002	White Oleander	Starr Thomas
2003	The Singing Detective	Nicola / Nina / Blonde
2003	Virgin	Mrs. Reynolds
2004	A Home at the End of the World	Clare
2005	Nine Lives	Diana	Locarno International Film Festival Award for Best Actress Nominated – Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female
2005	Sorry, Haters	Phoebe Torrence	Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
2005	Max	Mother	Short film
2006	Breaking and Entering	Liv Ullmann	Nominated – British Independent Film Award for Best Actress
2006	Room 10	Frannie Jones	Short film
2007	Hounddog	Stranger Lady
2007	Beowulf	Queen Wealtheow
2008	What Just Happened	Kelly
2008	New York, I Love You	Anna
2009	State of Play	Anne Collins
2009	The Private Lives of Pippa Lee	Pippa Lee
2009	A Christmas Carol	Fan Scrooge / Belle
2010	The Conspirator	Mary Surratt
2011	Moneyball	Sharon Beane
2011	Rampart	Linda Fentress
2011	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	Erika Berger
2013	The Congress	Robin Wright
2013	Adore	Roz
2014	A Most Wanted Man	Martha Sullivan
2015	Everest	Peach Weathers
2017	Wonder Woman	General Antiope
2017	Blade Runner 2049	Lieutenant Joshi
2017	Justice League	General Antiope	Uncredited cameo
2018	André the Giant	Herself	Documentary
2020	Wonder Woman 1984	General Antiope
2021	Land	Edee Mathis	Also director
2021	Zack Snyder's Justice League	General Antiope

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983–84	The Yellow Rose	Barbara Anderson	2 episodes
1984–88	Santa Barbara	Kelly Capwell	538 episodes Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Heroine Nominated – Soap Opera Digest Awards for Outstanding Younger Lead Actress Nominated – Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series (1986–1988)
2005	Empire Falls	Grace Roby	Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie
2011	Enlightened	Sandy	2 episodes
2013–2018	House of Cards	Claire Underwood	Main role (73 episodes), executive producer (Seasons 4-6) and director (10 episodes) Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama Gold Derby Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama Nominated – Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series (2014, 2016, 2018) Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama (2015–2016) Nominated – Gold Derby Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series (2014–2015) Nominated – Online Film and Television Association Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series (2013–2016) Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (2013–2017, 2019) Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series Nominated – Producers Guild of America Award for Best Episodic Drama Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama (2015–2016) Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series (2014–2018) Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2015–2016)

Awards and nominations

See also

• List of American film actresses
• List of Santa Barbara cast and characters

References

1. Archived July 21, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
2. Placido, Dani Di (May 19, 2016). "Robin Wright Is The Real Deal". Forbes. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
3. "Robin Wright Biography (1966-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved November 2, 2007.
4. "Robin Wright – Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
5. "Robin Wright as Claire Underwood". TV3.
6. Broadbent, Lucy (February 9, 2014). "Robin Wright on House of Cards, Botox and getting married again". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
7. Cameron-Wilson, James (1994). Young Hollywood. Batsford. p. 218. ISBN 978-0-7134-7266-0.
8. Hyman, Vicki (January 12, 2014). "2014 Golden Globes: Robin Wright wins best actress for online-only 'House of Cards'". The Star-Ledger. NJ.com. Retrieved January 13, 2014.
9. Peck, Emily (May 18, 2016). "Robin Wright Demanded The Same Pay As Kevin Spacey For 'House of Cards'". HuffPost. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
10. "House of Cards: Season 6 (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
11. "Robin Wright ('House of Cards') just became the first actress in 10 years to pull off this rare Emmy stat". Gold Derby. Penske Media Corporation. July 17, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
12. Clarke, Stewart (April 30, 2019). "Robin Wright Heads Into Wilderness for Directorial Film Debut 'Land,' With Sales to Start at Cannes". Variety. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
13. Reimann, Tom (October 18, 2019). "Filming Begins on Robin Wright's Directorial Debut 'Land'". Collider. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
14. Grossberg, Josh (December 28, 2007). "Penn, Wright Splitsville". Yahoo! News. Archived from the original on January 1, 2008.
15. Mell, Eila (2005). Casting Might-Have-Beens: A film by film directory. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 204. ISBN 978-0786420179.
16. MacMinn, Aleene (April 17, 1991). "Cradle Watch". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved July 27, 2014. Dylan Frances Penn was born Saturday [April 13] at 10:49 p.m. at UCLA Medical Center.
17. Kelly, Richard T. (2004). Sean Penn: His Life and Times. Canongate U.S. p. 274. ISBN 978-1841956237.
18. "The Insider – Vol. 45 No. 12". PEOPLE.com. March 25, 1996.
19. White, Nicholas (December 27, 2007). "Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn Divorcing". People. Retrieved July 30, 2017.
20. Orloff, Brian (April 9, 2008). "Sean Penn & Robin Wright Stop Divorce Action". People. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
21. Laudadio, Marisa; Lee, Ken (April 29, 2009). "Sean Penn Files for Legal Separation". People. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
22. "Sean Penn withdraws separation filing". USA Today. May 22, 2009.
23. Lee, Ken (August 18, 2009). "Robin Wright Penn Files for Divorce". People. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
24. Breslau, Karen (September 2009). "Robin Wright Penn Goes It Alone". More. Archived from the original on March 27, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
25. Derschowitz, Jessica (November 16, 2009). "Big changes for Robin Wright". CBS News. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
26. Oh, Eunice (August 4, 2010). "Sean Penn and Robin Wright Finalize Their Divorce". People. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
27. "Robin Wright and Ben Foster Get Cozy". People. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
28. Loinaz, Alexis L. (January 11, 2014). "Robin Wright and Ben Foster are engaged". People. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
29. Marquina, Sierra (November 12, 2014). "Robin Wright and Ben Foster Split, Call Off 10-Month Engagement – Find Out What Went Wrong". Us Weekly. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
30. Lee, Esther (March 10, 2015). "Robin Wright Talks Sex Life With Ben Foster After Sean Penn Divorce: "I've Never Been Happier"". Us Weekly. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
31. Webber, Stephanie (August 29, 2015). "Robin Wright, Ben Foster Call Off Engagement For the Second Time". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
32. Jones, Tashara (August 13, 2018). "Robin Wright and Clément Giraudet wed". New York Post. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
33. Archived April 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
34. "Pour Les Femmes". Plfdreams.tilt.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
35. "Giving Back – The SunnyLion and Raise Hope for Congo". TheSunnyLion.com. June 20, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
36. "When Elephants Fight (2015)". IMDb. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
37. "Mortality in the Democratic Republic of Congo: An Ongoing Crisis" (PDF). International Rescue Committee. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
38. "#StandWithCongo | A Stier Forward Campaign". Stand With Congo. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
39. "LIVE NYC Screening4Action at TriBeCa". Facebook.com/StandWithCongo. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
40. "Live with Robin Wright". Facebook.com/MicMedia. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
41. "Congo: The High Cost of Mineral Riches". WNYC (NPR). Retrieved July 27, 2016.
42. "Actress Robin Wright Talks About Her New Documentary". Facebook.com/HuffPostEntertainment. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
43. "'Making Noise': The Path Towards Global Equality". Rockefeller Foundation. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
44. "The Paradox Of Congo: How The World's Wealthiest Country Became Home To The World's Poorest People". ThinkProgress.org. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
45. "Robin Wright Makes a Powerful Political Statement — It's Not Related to 'House of Cards'". Mic.com. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
46. "Robin Wright: A-lister who's playing for high stakes off screen". The Guardian. May 22, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
47. "Robin Wright Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
48. "Robin Wright Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
49. "Robin Wright Instagram". Instagram. March 13, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.

External links

• Robin Wright at IMDb
• Robin Wright at the TCM Movie Database
• Robin Wright at AllMovie