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One of the stars of the new Amazon Prime Video thriller The Girlfriend has addressed his character’s relationship with his mother… which feels a bit too close at times.
The psychological drama, which is co-produced by Andy Serkis, stars legendary Hollywood star Robin Wright as Laura, a woman who becomes extremely suspicious of her son’s new girlfriend, Cherry (Olivia Cooke).
Cherry is a high-end estate agent with a mysterious past, while her boyfriend, Laura’s son, is Daniel (Laurie Davidson), a charming doctor who is frequently unaware of the tension brewing between the two most important women in his life.
At the London premiere of the series, Laurie, 33, spoke to Metro about the bond that Daniel has with Laura, which some people might think is strangely close for a grown adult man and the woman who raised him.
In one of the first scenes of the show, they have a tussle in the water of the pool in their grand family house, before they share beers in the sauna together.
‘He’s got a closer relationship with his mum than most people his age,’ the actor acknowledged.
What did Metro think of The Girlfriend?
You can read TV Editor Sabrina Barr’s full 4.5* review here.
Every so often, a psychological thriller comes along that quite literally makes you question your own mind. The Girlfriend does just that.
One could compare the drama to Gone Girl – it’s tough to know who to trust, it’s sexy and horrifying in equal measure, and the story becomes steadily more unhinged as it unfolds.
But honestly, the series is its own fresh entity, and I can’t wait for other TV fans to devour this utterly tantalising six-parter as quickly as I did.
From the moment Cherry walks into the Sanderson family home, she’s regarded by Laura as a threat. A woman who actually has the potential to take her son away from her for good.
At least, that’s how Laura sees it, even if she doesn’t notice her own paranoia gradually taking form.
Trust me when I say, this isn’t just a family drama about high-society squabbles. This revenge thriller is cutthroat, and it sticks the landing.
We then referenced the potential for viewers to call out their relationship for being ‘too close’ for a mother and son, erring on the side of ‘very intimate’.
‘I think people definitely will, and I wouldn’t defend it for them. I think that’s great,’ he stated.
‘I think in this country, it’s very unusual. I think there are other places in Europe, maybe, where mothers and sons do have that intimacy. For them, it wouldn’t even register that it was in any way sexual or Freudian.
‘But just being incredibly tactile, being a best friend. I know in Italian culture, for example, that relationship dynamic is quite common. I certainly was thinking with that in mind when doing it, but I think people will think it’s weird. So they should, that’s fine.’
During a separate conversation with Metro, Forrest Gump and House of Cards star Robin, 59, who directed several episodes of The Girlfriend, admitted that there were moments that she found ‘icky’.
In particular, there’s one scene where Daniel is in the middle of certain private activities on the balcony of their Spanish holiday home – and before she realises what he’s doing, Laura wraps her arm around him, much to his horror.
‘We were just like, “What else could we think of that would just be like, ick, double ick? Mum kissing him,” you know? It was a hoot. We had so much fun. We all got along so well and had so many laughs. I was blessed to have that cast,’ she shared.
The Girlfriend is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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