Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Melania Trump's Icy New Official Portrait Looks Like It's Straight Out Of 'House Of Cards'

Melania Trump; Robin Wright as Claire Underwood in 'House of Cards'
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Netflix

The First Lady is all business in her new official portrait—and some think she gives off a Claire Underwood vibe from the Netflix political drama House of Cards.

First Lady Melania Trump's new official White House portrait has been unveiled, and to many people online the vibes are very off—specifically in a House of Cards kind of way.

The wildly popular, award-winning Netflix series about Washington machinations took a fairly dim and sinister view of our nation's capital, so it only makes sense that a dim and sinister administration would want to emulate it.


Perhaps it was just an accident, but that certainly seems to be what was on Melania Trump's mind, as for many, her portrait called to mind Claire Underwood, the female lead of House of Cards played by Robin Wright.

@jlgolson/X

Underwood was the cunningly icy wife of the diabolical and power-hungry Frank Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey, whose ice-cold, calculating stare became part of the iconic look of the show.

But the portrait also comes with an overwrought flair that is vintage Trump—though the photo was reportedly shot in the Yellow Oval Room in the White House, the First Lady is depicted leaning over a conference table in a power suit like a corporate raider. Subtlety has never been this family's forte.

RELATED: Trump's New Portrait Was Unveiled—And People Think One Side Of His Face Looks Like Biden

As many have noted, the portrait is a stark break from the usual First Lady portrait, including Melania Trump's own in 2017, which typically aims to project warmth and approachability (though the 2017 version certainly dispensed with this far more than her predecessors).

There's not an iota of warmth to be found in this one—it lands somewhere between corporate headshot and fashion mag camp. It's basically oligarchy chic.

But the parallels between it and Claire Underwood aren't just theoretical—there are even images of Wright as Claire Underwood that seem like outright templates for the First Lady's photo.

And on social media, the parallel was practically all anyone could see—especially given the way House of Cards ended.



Melania Trump’s office has released her official portrait - the other is House Of Cards

[image or embed]
— Olga Nesterova (@onestpress.bsky.social) January 27, 2025 at 6:13 PM



Meet first lady Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) from de series House of Cards. Oh, wait… #Melania

[image or embed]
— Rosalynn 🇳🇱 (@rosa-lynn.bsky.social) January 28, 2025 at 1:14 PM

Anyway, we hope the Trump-voting public were wishing for a full-scale corporate-style raiding of the country, because it seems pretty clear that's what we're getting.

More from Entertainment/tv-and-movies

Ramy Youssef and Elmo
@sesamestreet/Instagram

MAGA Is Predictably Melting Down Over Video Of Elmo Learning New Arabic Words For Arab American Heritage Month

A clip released by Sesame Street on Thursday, April 16, showed Elmo with Egyptian-American actor, comedian, producer, director, and Golden Globe winner Ramy Youssef to celebrate Arab American Heritage Month.

The 41-second video showed Youssef teaching Elmo the Arabic words "salamu alaykum" and "habibi."

Keep ReadingShow less
Nancy Sinatra; Donald Trump
Jim Spellman/WireImage; Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

Nancy Sinatra Fires Back At Trump With Four Powerful Words After He Uses Her Father's Song In Cryptic Post

Singer Nancy Sinatra, the daughter of the iconic crooner Frank Sinatra, criticized President Donald Trump after he posted a video featuring her father's version of the song "My Way" to Truth Social amid his ongoing war and negotiations with Iran.

"My Way," a song about an individual looking back on their decision to live life on their own terms, was one of the late Sinatra's signature hits. Trump posted a video of Sinatra singing the song with no comment or explanation.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Pete Buttigieg; Donald Trump
@Acyn/X; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Pete Buttigieg Explains Why Trump's AI Jesus Post Was So Offensive To Christian Conservatives In Viral Video

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg condemned President Donald Trump for posting an AI-generated post depicting himself as Jesus Christ, describing it as "insulting" to both people's faith and their intelligence.

Earlier this month, the Pope criticized Trump's widely unpopular war in Iran and called on the world "to reject war, especially a war which many people have said is an unjust war, which is continuing to escalate and is not resolving anything."

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Donald Trump
@atrupar/X

Trump Dragged After Gushing Over His Own Signature In Ultra-Cringey Viral Clip

President Donald Trump was super proud of himself after he signed an executive order to make certain psychedelic drugs more available to treat mental health conditions, taking an opportunity to boast about his own signature.

Trump's order approves $50 million in federal funding to expand access to certain therapies and directed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to fast-track its review of drugs like psilocybin and ibogaine. He was joined by the likes of podcaster Joe Rogan and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the Oval Office.

Keep ReadingShow less
Charlize Theron (left) responds to Timothée Chalamet’s (right) controversial comments about ballet and opera.
Steve Granitz/FilmMagic; Jamie McCarthy/WireImage

Charlize Theron Gives Timothée Chalamet A Blunt Reality Check About His Future After His Comments Insulting Ballet

Timothée Chalamet declaring that “no one cares” about ballet and opera was always going to age poorly. It just happened faster than expected.

Enter Charlize Theron, who didn’t just disagree—she flipped the whole argument, suggesting that while centuries-old art forms will endure, Chalamet’s own career may be far more vulnerable in the age of artificial intelligence.

Keep ReadingShow less