THE WRIGHT FILE

Born April 8, 1966 in Dallas, Texas, but raised in San Diego. Her mother was a cosmetics saleswoman and her father worked for a pharmaceutical company. She began modelling at 14 and, after leaving school, got a part in the soap opera Santa Barbara, where she met her first husband, Dane Witherspoon.

Wright later moved into film, starring in The Princess Bride, Forrest Gump and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. She married (and eventually split from) Sean Penn, with whom she has two children.

BEST OF TIMES

Winning the Golden Globe award for best actress (television series drama) in 2014, for her role as Claire Underwood in House of Cards. Wright was the first actress to win a Golden Globe for a web TV series.

WORST OF TIMES

Her divorce from Sean Penn, after 14 years of marriage and numerous separations.

WHAT SHE SAYS

“I feel as though I’ve just graduated. I mean, I never went to college. I was pregnant at 23. You hear people say how they have ‘arrived’, but it was just always there, waiting to come out. For me, it just took a long time. I’m 48. I’m finally a person. I think I’m finally ready.” Vanity Fair WHAT OTHERS SAY “It’s just so clear she’s an amazing actress, one of the best we’ve got. But she was in movies that were not home runs.” Jodie Foster, who directed Wright in an episode of House of Cards, Vanity Fair