She was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for this role at the 65th, 66th, 67th, 68th, 69th and 71st Primetime Emmy Awards. Claire's main storyline in season 2 is her advocacy, as Second Lady, for a sexual assault prevention bill. She is the first woman to serve as President. [41] He attacks her with a letter opener, superficially wounding her in the throat, but cannot bring himself to kill her, instead collapsing into her arms. Screenshot via Netflix. When Claire delivers her simple request in the promo video Message From the Underwood Administration, she entreats viewers to tell us what you see. So too in this medium close-up does the camera beckon,watch Claire. John Tyler 11. She fires her cabinet to neutralize his influence, and leaks information tying him and Bill Shepherd to laundering money for the Russian government; she also punishes Annette Shepherd by revealing to the press that Annette's son, Duncan (Cody Fern), is in fact the biological child of one of her serving staff. Also, one of the main reasons for her even working at CWI is simply to make herself and her husband seem like caring individuals. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Claire grabs the letter opener and stabs him in the stomach. Wright's performance in season 5 earned her a fifth consecutive Primetime Emmy nomination at the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards. She was portrayed by Robin Wright. When a truck carrying radioactive material goes missing, Acting President Claire is locked in an underground bunker, but Doug quickly uncovers that the entire thing was engineered by Brockhart as an attempted coup to remove the Underwoods from office. Published Feb 15, 2021. Claire defeats General Brockhart to become Vice but with neither Frank nor Conway able to muster enough votes to win the House, Claire becomes Acting President until the race is decided. 1. 'male ego' (as Claire calls it). Yet as it continues, the show increasingly trends toward Claires quotable quips, political (and sexual) appetites, and complete command of the Oval Office, with (or in spite of) the presidents blessings. When Galloway leaks an intimate photo of Claire to appease his jealous fiance, Claire intimidates him into publicly stating that he fabricated the picture, ruining his reputation. Frank acquires a recording of Conway verbally abusing a pilot, as well as a recording of Conway's running mate, General Ted Brockhart (Colm Feore), threatening to kill Frank, which Frank and Claire use to blackmail Conway's campaign manager Mark Usher (Campbell Scott) into helping them; they then release the tapes anyway. Produced by David Fincher, House of Cards was the first Netflix series to be produced in-house and helped usher in a new era for streaming services and prestige television. 49: 795-801, 2017. When Frank was appointed Vice President, Claire had Gillian Cole (despite the fact that she was fired) become the CWI's new CEO. "I will talk about this if you want but if youre doubting yourself, I cant indulge that.". First episode: [45][46] In so doing she became the first actress to win a Golden Globe Award for an online-only streaming television series. After leaving Frank, Claire goes back to Texas, where she has a tense reunion with her mother, who is dying of lymphoma. [10] Claire has "chilly poise" but the "coolly regal doyenne" softens over the course of the first season according to New Republic's Laura Bennet. Season three ends with Claire leaving Frank as he prepares to go to the New Hampshire primary.[39][40]. Openly, the Underwoods supported Secretary of State Catherine Durant, but behind closed doors, had small numbers of delegates vote for Claire, with the Underwoods dismissing it as "good fun". [49][50] She was nominated for both Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series and Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series at the 21st Screen Actors Guild Awards. She is a lobbyist and runs an environmental nonprofit organization, but in later seasons ascends to the position of Second Lady of the United States, and finally First Lady of the United States and the United States Ambassador to the . There was plenty of speculation over how (despite Claire previously serving as Acting President and being Vice President) the writers could gracefully manage such a transition, but one thing is . As Frank, evicted from the White House, watches Claire's first televised address, he's horrified to realize she's gone back on her word, refusing to issue his desired pardon. When Rosanna Arquette interviewed Wright in the documentary Searching for Debra Winger(2002), she marveled on how Wright balanced a successful career and family, gushing, Youre actually in a marriage that works and you work together its like, a dream.. The House of Representatives did not choose a president but the Senate chose Claire Underwood as the 51st Vice President of the United States, which resulted in her being sworn in as the Acting President of the United States, until the House chooses a President. She cinched the deal when she told those bankrolling the show that Claire was more popular than Francis and, in a bold move that she no doubted acquired from (or acclimated to) her doppelgnger, threatened to go public if they did not acquiesce. James Buchanan 16. . She wears more silks now, soft fabrics for a softer, unsure. Claire is also faced with a series of diplomatic crises: Russian soldiers have taken over an American base, and the Russians and Chinese are vying for possession of a boat in Antarctica that has a stowaway American working for the Russians. In her career, she also served as Acting President of the United States, 46th First Lady of the United States, and the U.S. "[19] Los Angeles Times critic Mary McNamara makes the case that House of Cards is a love story on many levels but most importantly between Frank and Claire. Claire Hale Underwood was very close to her father; her mother even stating: "You got away with murder". [36] Based upon the 4-episode preview, Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times says that in season 2 Claire "is still ruthlessly pursuing her own agenda as well as her husband's. When Frank recovers from surgery, he agrees to let Claire be his vice president. The president uses every single female stereotype to her advantage, showing the world that the being the best leader is all about tact and strategy, regardless of what gender you are. [16], Willimon notes that "What's extraordinary about Frank and Claire is there is deep love and mutual respect, but the way they achieve this is by operating on a completely different set of rules than the rest of us typically do. October 31, 2018, 4:30 PM. Before she can testify about her ordeal before Congress, however, Megan suffers a breakdown and attempts suicide. He nominates her, but the Senate rejects her after a rocky hearing. Andrew Jackson 8. Of the hundreds of reasons we are obsessed with House Of Cards Claire Underwood's ruthless brilliance is right up there. The most skin we really see from Claire Underwood is when she opts for a wide neckline, such as in some of the looks above. "Claire was always the one who would come home from a late night in Lamont studying for a midterm or writing a twenty-page paper, and still go out for a run," Natalie Rutkowski, a former . Theodore Roosevelt 27. Aidan, the data scientist who Claire's adviser LeAnn brought on board to help rig the election, was kidnapped and interrogated by the Russians. His reaction to this is subtle but clear: no one calls him that but Claire. While the House was a complete caos, Claire managed to convince a Democratic Senate to vote her as VP. When the show's fifth and penultimate season started, President Frank and VP Claire had just launched a war on terror a war that they themselves engineered in order to distract the American people from Tom Hammerschmidt's damaging report on their devious machinations and back-room dealings. "Frank" Underwood. Any flinch is facial. Claire Hale Underwood, later returning to her maiden name Claire Hale, is the deuteragonist of the Netflix series House of Cards. [47], For season 2, Wright earned a Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series nomination at the 4th Critics' Choice Television Awards. Could we have bought into Claires ruthless rationality had we known Wright to still be waving from the audience at Penn, as he accepted yet another accolade? She was able to manipulate Trisha Walker into seeking couple's counseling for herself and the President, where the First Lady was also prescribed pills that were really meant for the President. Yep, President Claire Underwood is preggers. However, she has shown to have some guilt and sadness with her ruthless pragmatism, which is demonstrated following her visit to a rape victim who becomes suicidal after Claire uses and discards her. In the meantime, Claire is sworn in as Acting President of the United States and begins to exert her limited power by excluding Frank from certain presidential functions, such as the swearing-in of the new Justice of the Supreme Court. In season 5, Claire's story begins as the opening scene of the season: shooting a propaganda commercial in order to stir up fear. Robin Wright William Henry Harrison 10. House of Cards (2013-18) is a Netflix original series based on the British miniseries of the same name detailing the rise of a scheming American politician, Congressman Frank Underwood, a Democrat from South Carolina's 5th congressional district and House Majority Whip.He is passed over for appointment as Secretary of State, so he initiates an elaborate plan to attain power, aided by his wife . [34][35], According to Drew Grant of The New York Observer, Claire's season-long storyline was similar to the real life efforts of United States Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's to legislate an end to military sexual assault. Claire retaliates on the day of the South Carolina primary by covertly leaking a photo of Frank's father with a Klansman, imperiling Frank's candidacy. Frank resigns and Claire is sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. [6] She has a difficult relationship with her mother, Elizabeth Hale (Ellen Burstyn), who despises Frank and is disappointed in Claire for marrying him. Congress ratified the 25th amendment to the Constitutionwhich says that the Vice President will be sworn in as acting president if the president is impeached, incapacitated or killedin. She makes a shaky alliance with him, however, by promising to protect him in return for his help getting rid of Durant, who she fears will testify against her regarding her and Frank's crimes. The Donald tries to undermine the Queen. [20], In season 3, when the Underwoods are President and First Lady of the United States, Claire's marriage to Frank begins to falter. "My turn." Lone StarSecret Service code name She is the deuteragonist in Seasons 1 to 5, and the main protagonist in Season 6. Netflix. 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