Joanna Going became a household name as First Lady Tricia Walker in the Emmy nominated Netflix series House of Cards. On October 14, she will return to TV to reprise her edgy role as drug addled, prostitute, Christina Kulina in DirecTV’s gritty second season of Kingdom. We caught up with the New England native to discuss her roles, working with Robin Wright and what she loves most about Boston.
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“When I attended Emerson College in Boston, it was confined to the Back Bay but now it has taken over a lot of Boston, which is great,” she said. “I lived in the Charlesgate building and loved the parks there, the Common and the Public Garden. I grew up in Newport so I went to Boston growing up. The city holds a lot of special memories of my childhood like the Swan Boats and Make Way for Ducklings. When I went to school at Emerson, I was completed charmed living there and loved the architecture of the Back Bay.”
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Going has worked with everyone from Kevin Spacey and Kevin Costner to Brendan Fraser and John Cusack. “House of Cards was amazing to work on,” Going added. “I couldn’t believe I landed there. I did a self-tape audition and didn’t know much about the character I would be playing. When I got the role, I was thrilled. Working with Robin (Wright) was incredible because we were both working on soap operas. I was on Another World and she was on Santa Barbara, which we had on in the studio after filming.”
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From First Lady Tricia Walker on House of Cards, Going returns to television this fall to reprise her edgy role as drug addled, prostitute, Christina Kulina in DirecTV’s gritty second season of Kingdom. What was it like playing such a different role? “Christina could not be more different than First Lady Tricia Walker,” she said. “It was quite the 180. Christina got involved with Alvey when she was quite young. She’s free spirited and an artist at heart. When we meet her, she is a junkie who supports her habit on the street. She’s chaotic yet independent. I don’t see her as a victim. She is a lot of fun to play. It’s really freeing and refreshing to play such a gritty raw character. A lot of my career I have played ladies so this has been a roller coaster ride. It’s physically exhausting and emotionally disturbing to do the research and delve into additions, heroin and prostitution. I have watched a lot of videos addicts have made on detoxing. I think they are so brave to do that.
While she currently lives in Los Angeles with her daughter, Stella, Going still considers herself a New England girl. “I am definitely an East Coast girl born and bred but with the winters the past couple of years, I am grateful to live in southern California,” she said. “I grew up in a home that is now a National Landmark that has been restored by the Preservation Society in Newport. My parents lived in that house for 25 years. I grew up living in historic architecture and miss that now growing up in New England. I didn’t appreciate it as a kid, but I sure do now.”
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