Fans of ‘The Good Wife’ have long suspected a feud between Julianna Margulies (Alicia Florrick) and Archie Panjabi (Kalinda Sharma), and CBS has done a stunning job of controlling any and all press-leaks about what might have caused their chasm. The two characters have not shared a scene together since mid-fourth season, and any contact has occurred over the telephone, which has conveniently kept them apart. When Panjabi announced her exit after season six, fans were elated at the idea of their reunion. Since CBS promised they’d finally share one last scene, viewers naturally assumed they would actually . . . share one last scene. In fact, when creator Robert King was directly asked, he artfully dodged the inquiry, saying, ““I think they’ll be happy with the last episode — the last episode goes there.”
When the much-talked about scene finally aired, social media got to work. Fans noticed the odd lighting and lack of eye contact, and rumors began to circulate that the scene was filmed separately using green screen. When asked, Panjabi gave a cryptic response effectively confirming the suspicion. In response to their lack of screen time, Panjabi has consistently implored the audience to ask the producers, given that she has no creative control (that’s a subtle dig, given that Margulies is a producer).
While there’s no confirmed evidence of any hostility, the answer is obvious. If only I could walk into a desk job and throw down demands as to who I do and do not want to work with, and then ask my entire team to accommodate those demands no matter what the cost or inconvenience. Their vitriol is shocking, and juvenile, and they should be forced to be adults.