Robin Wright isn’t running away from the debate about one of her most iconic movie roles.
The actress, 58, did an interview with the New York Times Friday alongside her “Forrest Gump” co-star, Tom Hanks, to promote their new film “Here,” and Wright was asked if she thinks her character in the 1994 classic, Jenny Curran, was “kind of an anti-feminist role.”
“No! It’s not about that,” Wright rebutted. “People have said she’s a Voldemort to Forrest. I wouldn’t choose that as a reference, but she was kind of selfish.”
In “Forrest Gump,” Wright’s Jenny is a victim of child sexual abuse and lives a life of freedom that involves drug use and sex work, as well as an on-and-off decades-long relationship with Hanks’ title character. Jenny eventually dies of a terminal illness after having a child with Forrest.
“I don’t think it’s a punishment that she gets AIDS,” said Wright. “She was so promiscuous — that was the selfishness that she did to Forrest. He was in love with her from Day 1. And she was just flighty and running and doing coke and hooking up with a Black Panther.”
“And then she gets sick and says, ‘This is your child. But I’m dying.’ And he still takes her: “I’ll take care of you at Mama’s house.” I mean, it’s the sweetest love story,’” the actress added.
Forrest and Jenny’s love story was initially considered toxic by fans, mostly due to Jenny’s selfish behavior. But in recent years, there’s been much more sympathy for Jenny because of the childhood abuse she experienced.
Wright told the NYT that she still appreciates the beloved film, which won six Oscars including Best Picture and Best Actor for Hanks, 68.
“It’s a movie that I will always feel sentimental about, not only because it’s a great movie,” Wright said. “Sentimental working with these guys because it was such a great experience.
Hanks added, “It is this extraordinary amalgam that stands completely on its own and never has to be repeated. And thank God we never bothered trying to make another one. Why put a hat on a hat?”
The actors have reteamed with “Forrest Gump” director Robert Zemeckis on “Here.” The film, based on a 2014 graphic novel, follows Hanks and Wright as a married couple across decades, with the use of AI and a single camera.
“We just picked up right where we left off. I’m going to say we love each other because we’re so easy with each other,” Hanks said of his and Wright’s reunion.
Last month, Hanks told The Hollywood Reporter that working with Wright now is the “same exact process” as it was in the 1990s.
“We just pick up with the ease, the luxury of knowing each other backward and forward and great, great trust and affection,” the “Cast Away” star explained.
