Robin Wright, 59, is emphasizing a new approach to love and aging, saying she no longer wants to live with the fear and doubt that marked relationships in her 20s. In a candid interview with AARP's Movies for Grownups, the star of House of Cards said the stress of worrying whether a partner will cheat is something she hopes to leave behind. 'I don't want to worry anymore. I don't want to doubt, I don't want to suspect. I don't want all those things that we did in our 20s,' Wright said.
She added that she cannot imagine feeling that jealousy again, describing it as an outgrown tendency. 'You grow out of it like you grow out of a pair of pants,' she said. Wright has a long history of high-profile relationships, including marriages to Dane Witherspoon and Sean Penn and, more recently, Clément Giraudet, as well as two broken engagements to Ben Foster.
After meeting Penn in the 1990s—she was 24 when they began dating, and they married in 1996 before divorcing in 2010—Wright and Penn share two children, Dylan Frances Penn and Hopper Jack Penn. She has described herself as 'such a romantic,' acknowledging that tumult and heartbreak can come with love, but also that there is hope for lasting connection. Wright has since moved to the United Kingdom to build a home with architect Henry Smith, 52, a relationship she says began years ago after they met in a pub. She told The Times that Smith is 'a sweetheart and just a good, decent adult. He's a man... That's exactly what I wanted.'
As she approaches her 60s, Wright has spoken about embracing the next chapter with optimism. 'It's liberating to be done. Be done with searching, looking and getting 60 per cent of what you wanted,' she said, signaling a shift away from pursuing an ideal of perfection. While she remains open to companionship, she has made clear that marriage is not a goal, stating, 'No. God no. Why? That's just unnecessary.' She has also noted that she has found a sense of security with Henry, adding that she is 'seen and loved for who I am. It's so relaxing.'
In addition to her personal life, Wright is promoting The Girlfriend, a thriller series she directs and stars in, which premiered on Prime Video on Sept. 10. The show centers on a mother who becomes suspicious of her son's young girlfriend, a premise Wright says taps into a familiar parental instinct. 'My character has the perfect son—she's obsessed with him. When he brings home a new girlfriend, she's suspicious. It evolves from there. As a mom [to Dylan, 34, and Hopper, 32], I've had that sixth sense of 'not quite sure she's great for my son...' One banal thing and I've blown it out of proportion. But never to the extent of The Girlfriend... it's a shocker,' she told AARP.
Wright has long since relocated to England, where she and Henry Smith are building a life together and planning to move to a new home by the coast. She has said she did not foresee her children entering show business, but both Dylan and Hopper are now actors who have collaborated with family members on projects. 'My kids were on film sets their whole lives, and they said from a very young age, 'I'll never be an actor. I would never be in this business.' And sure enough, they're both actors now, and they're both really good. Hopper even gave me acting advice on set of a project I directed,' she recalled.
Looking ahead, Wright says turning 60 is not the end of an era but a milestone that reinforces her commitment to living life on her terms. 'I don't see it as the end of an era. It's just another number that's a little bit bigger. I think I did that shift when I was 50, where I said, "I'm going to do it my way."'
The Girlfriend marks another step in a career that has spanned decades, with Wright balancing acting, directing, and a personal life that she says remains grounded in being true to herself and embracing love on her own terms.