Ruth Wilder

Ruth Wilder

69
    GLOW

Character Analysis

(Avoiding Spoilers)

Grew Up... in Omaha, Nebraska. Ruth fell in love with theater at an early age and she grew up performing at the Blue Barn Theatre.

Living... in 1980s Los Angeles. Despite living near Tinsel Town, Ruth’s life is about as unglamorous as possible.

Profession... actress. Well, more like struggling actress. Ruth spends her days going on audition after audition, and getting rejected for insubstantial female roles she didn’t even really want in the first place. As she puts it, “What I'm interested in are real parts. Not secretaries telling powerful men their wives are on line two.” She longs for a project that would allow her to put her acting training to good use—not to mention pay her bills.

Interests... studying acting techniques and reading the plays of August Strindberg.

Relationship Status... it’s complicated. In a fit of loneliness, Ruth had an affair with Mark, the husband of her best friend Debbie Eagan. The affair destroyed Mark and Debbie’s marriage, and ended Ruth’s relationship with her best friend too. Ruth doesn’t actually have any real feelings for Mark, and the whole calamity has made her feel worthless and undeserving of love.

Challenge... creating a wrestling show. Ruth winds up getting hired for a women’s wrestling show called the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling or GLOW. She has no experience with the world of professional wrestling and neither do most of her co-stars. Under the direction of ornery Sam Sylvia, they have to create their characters, learn how to wrestle, and shape a semi-improvisational show. As she does with most creative projects, Ruth throws herself wholeheartedly into GLOW, but things get a bit more complicated when Debbie is hired for the show too. With Debbie taking on the role of all-American hero “Liberty Belle,” Ruth invents a villainous Russian character named “Zoya the Destroya.”

Personality... passionate, creative, and self-loathing. Ruth’s life hasn’t turned out the way she thought it would, which has filled her with self-doubt and frustration. Though she believes in her talent, she can also be her own worst enemy too, particularly in her personal life. Ruth is a tad pretentious and a bit bossy, but she also has a deep, earnest belief in the power of art and artistic communities. She’s immensely creative and throws herself into everything she does 110%. As Ruth jokes, “It's never too early to be in character.” While some find her intensity a little off-putting, her fierce commitment and loyalty are her strongest traits.

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