Showrunner Anja Marquardt has opened up about casting Julia Goldani Telles as the lead in the third season of The Girlfriend Experience. The series, which premieres on STARZPLAY, follows Telles’ character Iris, a tech expert by day and high-end sex worker by night in London.
Marquardt praised Telles’ performance, saying, “She brings such vulnerability and such strength at the same time to the character.” The director first noticed Telles in The Affair and was determined to cast her despite her relative inexperience as a lead actress.
The casting process was “straightforward, but not necessarily easy,” Marquardt explained, as they needed a new face capable of carrying an entire season. Telles was brought on while Marquardt was still writing the scripts, allowing the role to be tailored to her abilities.
Season three explores the transactional nature of escort-client relationships, with Iris offering the ‘girlfriend experience’ by adopting different personas. The series also highlights the challenges of the gig economy, with Telles seamlessly navigating the genre-blending narrative.
