What The Cast Of The Good Wife Is Doing Today

"The Good Wife” debuted in 2009 and showcased a stay-at-home mom Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) who's forced into a life transformation. The new corporate lawyer turned a very public scandal involving her politician husband, Peter (Chris Noth), into positive personal and professional growth. Multi-layered, nuanced characters make "The Good Wife" far more than just another legal procedural, and fans root for Alicia's triumph. However, by the end of Season 7, "The Good Wife" thematically showcased the corruption and greed behind the pursuit of power. Systemic corruption seeped through storylines and Alicia Florrick became more of an antihero than a straightforward heroine.

The show also spawned a solid spin-off series, "The Good Fight," which centered on Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), and ran for six seasons. The show's creators, Michelle and Robert King (who also created the critically-acclaimed supernatural drama, "Evil"), spoke to NPR about the ways in which the show imitated real life. "Every other week or every other month there was this poor woman standing by her disgraced husband and it was just this kind of nightmarish scene where the wife did nothing wrong, but was kind of dragged up there as a prop," Robert King said. "The Good Wife" explores the dimensions behind the scandalized headline spouses.

The series showcased many talented A-list actors, including Michael J. Fox and Kristen Chenoweth, and received a staggering 43 Emmy nominations while taking home five awards. Let's look at what some cast members are up to now.

As a senior partner at Stern, Lockhart, and Gardner, Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) stands for social justice and women's rights. A progressive liberal, Diane surprises herself (and her fans) when she falls for Republican ballistics expert Kurt McVeigh (Gary Cole) and eventually marries him. Her tough-as-nails exterior proves adversarial for Alicia in the early seasons of "The Good Wife." However, the two form a friendship and Diane becomes Alicia's mentor, which makes Alicia's final season betrayal of Diane harder to swallow. The talented Christine Baranski communicates the layers of pain Alicia causes Diane through powerful nonverbal acting — via a vicious slap.

Throughout the series, we grew to love Diane, and luckily, the character's journey didn't end with the series finale. Baranski continues to play the character in "The Good Fight," which sees Diane Lockhart lose everything but continue to battle against the insane oppression of the modern world. Christine Baranski has proved her acting chops in Broadway performances, television shows, and feature films. 

In 2022, the actress appeared as socialite Agnes van Rhijn on "The Gilded Age," an HBO period drama from "Downton Abbey" creator Julian Fellowes, to positive reviews. Variety said the series "has made a strong argument for the efficacy of series creator Julian Fellowes' method as a deliverer of narrative delight."

According to The Washington Post, when Scottish actor Alan Cumming first appeared on "The Good Wife," he was only meant to star in a few episodes. As Eli Gold, Peter Florrick's campaign manager and chief of staff, Cumming brought much-needed levity to the show. The actor's portrayal of Gold's devious nature and over-the-top passion for politics makes the character compelling to watch. Reportedly, Eli Gold was based on Rahm Emanuel, Barack Obama's former chief of staff. Cumming told NPR that he researched Emanuel and studied his characteristics to inform his portrayal.

Before starring in "The Good Wife," Cumming had already built an impressive resume. Per IMDb, the actor has amassed over 130 onscreen credits. Cumming reprised his role as Gold on "The Good Fight" and in an interview with Vulture, he said, "I love Eli, and it's [playing the role] been such an amazing thing to do." Among other roles, Cummings also starred in the Apple TV+ romantic musical spoof "Schmigadoon!" (with fellow "The Good Wife" alum Kristin Chenoweth) and has lent his voice to several scripted podcast series, including "Solar."

Matt Czuchry was two years out of his memorable role as trust fund kid Logan Huntzberger on "Gilmore Girls" when he landed the role of Cary Agos on "The Good Wife." At the beginning of the series, the cocky young Agos is a first-year associate at Stern, Gardner, and Lockhart. He stands in direct competition with Alicia Florrick, and the two often butt heads. Yet by Season 5, Cary and Alicia join forces to form their own law firm.

Throughout the show, Cary endures personal struggles and the audience watches him grow up while settling into his identity. Per IMDb, over seven seasons Czuchry appeared in 156 episodes of "The Good Wife," although his character's arc wraps before the series finale. The actor told The Hollywood Reporter that he hasn't ever watched the final episode of the show and that he has "no plans to watch it." 

After the show ended, Czuchry landed the lead in another procedural series and has played Conrad Hawkins on the medical drama "The Resident" since 2018. The actor also reprised his role as Rory Gilmore's complicated love interest in the miniseries "Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life."

Mackenzie Vega debuted as Grace Florrick on "The Good Wife" when she was just 15 years old — and the actress already had an impressive resume. Vega had appeared in films like "Sin City" and "X-Men: The Last Stand" before entering her teenage years, and her experience lent to a fleshed-out performance as the youngest Florrick. Grace is a typical whiny teenager, but her struggles to navigate her relationships with her parents and peers are genuine. Vega starred as a series regular throughout the show's first six seasons before becoming a recurring character in Season 7.

The actress isn't the first of her siblings to pursue a professional acting career either. Vega's older sister, Alexa, starred in the "Spy Kids" franchise, among many other television and feature film roles. Vega has continued to act since her departure from "The Good Wife." She played Sarah Carlin in "13 Reasons Why" and starred in the slasher movie "Fender Bender." The actress spoke to the horror website Daily Dead about her role in the slasher film and her love of the horror genre. "I would absolutely love to do more horror films. They're fun," she said.

Over the first three seasons of "The Good Wife," firm partner Julius Cain (Michael Boatman) is the cocky head of litigation and a recurring character who always makes his presence known. Cain is the lone conservative in the office and often finds himself at odds with Diane Lockhart. Cain fades from the show's central storylines after his attempt to replace Will Gardner's partnership fails in the Season 3 episode, "Blue Ribbon Panel." However, Boatman reprised the character in Season 5 and 6 guest appearances.

Boatman's time on the series reunited him with his former "Spin City" co-star, Michael J. Fox, who played extremely intelligent yet slimy attorney Louis Canning from Season 2 to Season 7. Boatman wasn't done with Julius Cain after "The Good Wife," however, as he returned to reprise his role as a main character on "The Good Fight" and appeared on the spin-off show from Season 1 to Season 6.

Boatman spoke to The Quintessential Gentleman about Julius Cain and the chance to add depth to the character in "The Good Fight." He said, "Julius, my character, is somebody who definitely believes in the hierarchy of the law firm. You're an associate; I'm a partner, and that's it ... They did in The Good Fight what every actor wants, which is to flesh out the character."

If not for the character of Peter Florrick (Chris Noth), "The Good Wife" wouldn't exist. Alicia's adulterous, power-hungry husband was the motivation she needed to start a new life, as Peter symbolized all Alicia despised about her identity. Yet over the course of the show, we discover that Alicia can never truly escape her scandalized spouse –- their lives are forever intertwined. Chris Noth plays Peter as a larger-than-life figure — much like his "Sex and the City" character, John James Preston, aka Mr. Big. However, where Mr. Big shows empathy and love, Peter does whatever it takes to get ahead.

In an interview with Metro, Noth defended his villainous characters. "There's a misconception about all my characters. They're imperfect people, and they're conflicted, and they're complicated like everybody ... I find the generalization that they're bad to be a little ridiculous," he stated.

However, it seems life somewhat imitated art for Noth. In 2021, the actor found himself accused of sexual assault. Variety reported that the allegations came from five different women, including supermodel Beverly Johnson. The actor was subsequently written out of the "Sex and the City" follow-up series, "And Just Like That..." and dropped from his talent representation. According to The Berkshire Eagle, almost a year after the initial allegations against him, Noth returned to acting via a one-night stage-reading of Eugene Ionesco's "Rhinoceros." The actor produced, directed, and starred in the performance, which was presented by Saint James Place in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.