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The third day of the business program opened with an absolute highlight: “House of Cards” and “Forrest Gump“ star Robin Wright and Executive Producer Rola Bauer presented Prime Video's upcoming psychological thriller “The Girlfriend”.

In an exciting conversation, the eight-time Emmy-nominated actress later talked about various stages of her career, her beginnings on “Santa Barbara”, her further successes, the crucial time of the start of “House of Cards”, the start of directing, her fight for equal pay for men and women, and her initiative for women in the Congo.

Executive Producer Rola Brauer and Wright spoke about the creation of the new series “The Girlfriend”, an adaptation based on the novel by Michelle France, and how their collaboration started. An exclusive first scene was shown to the audience of journalists and TV professionals, which was very well received. The six part series is about Laura played by Wright, who's idyllic life comes apart at the seams when her son's new girlfriend appears suspicious. Determined to protect him, Laura's actions spiral out of control and raise the question.

Going forward, Wright, who will receive a Crystal Nymph Award during the festival, shared insights from her outstanding career.

The actress recounted being denied equal pay during the “House of Cards” production, despite her character’s popularity and equal workload, revealing she was offered additional roles like executive producer and director to compensate. When she asked why she couldn’t simply be paid the same as her male co-star Kevin Spacey, the response was, “Because you didn’t win an Academy Award” — highlighting ongoing gender inequity in the industry.
The Hollywood star is an advocate for human rights in the Democratic Republic of Congo, particularly focusing on the issue of conflict minerals. She shared that she started activism as she heard that there are more women raped in Congo then people died in the Second World War.

She also recalled the beginning of her directing career during the “House of Cards” years, as the camera operator asked her, why she didn’t start directing, as she was asking so many questions. Questioned about shooting internationally, Wright said that it’s only difference is the language barrier and for the actors “it was heaven working in gloomy London and sunny Spain” as the producers had to care about the rest.

When asked about her private television consumption and if she’s watching television, Wright confessed “Yes, but it takes like three hours to find what you want to watch”, hinting on one of the biggest challenges in today’s age of streaming. Having lived in the UK for the past three years, she highlighted English series she found “fantastic”, such as “Mom” with Lesley Manville.

When asked which movie of her career was not seen enough, Wright shared her admiration for the work of Rebecca Miller, who wrote and directed “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee“.

Robin Wright will receive the prestigious Crystal Nymph Award during the Closing Ceremony of the 64th edition of the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in the presence of Prince Albert II of Monaco on Tuesday, June 17th.

Written by Lühr-Martin Lemkau