Get ready for even more White Lotus water cooler convo, because the stars of HBO’s smash hit have officially spilled the tea!
“HBO begged me to set this season in Gary, Indiana for budgetary reasons. They found this abandoned Best Western in downtown Gary that they insisted on shooting in. This one executive was leaving me voicemails, literally screaming at me. ‘Gary, Indiana is the same thing as Thailand. I’ve been to both places. Same fucking shit. You’re not being a team player, Mike. It’s so unfair you won’t give Gary a chance. You’re being a diva, Mike. I already got HBO to buy the Best Western. Deal’s done. It’s ours. And once you buy a Best Western, you can’t fucking ‘return’ it. There’s no going back. I put my job on the line to do that. I risked everything. Mike, I will ruin you if you push back on this.’ We compromised and agreed to do Thailand on the condition that I set the next season in Gary.” – Mike White, on the third season of The White Lotus taking place in Thailand
“Mike [White] originally wrote that monologue about being an Asian girl for his School of Rock script—and apparently they shot it too, but all the kid actors started crying before Jack Black could finish the monologue, so they dropped it.” – Sam Rockwell, on his viral monologue from episode 5
“I was nervous because I’d never done motion-capture performance before, and I was so uncomfortable wearing that mo-cap suit in 100℉ weather for 12 hours at a time, but Mike [White] was utterly trusting and supportive. He always encouraged me to go off script and try new things every take.” – Alec Baldwin, on portraying Saxon’s protein shakes
“One time a monitor lizard wandered into the middle of a shot, so Mike [White] yelled ‘Tạd!’—that’s Thai for ‘Cut!’—and then he beheaded the lizard with a clapperboard. He is a genius.” – Lalisa Manobal, on working with Mike White
“I was competing with Paula Deen to play Victoria Ratliff. I remember sitting across from her in the audition waiting room. I said hello. She didn’t smile or say anything. Just ignored me, eyes down on her script. A minute later, Paula glances up and whispers, ‘Bitch.’ I say, ‘Excuse me?’ She ignores me again, acts like nothing happened, keeps underlining random scene headings in the script and nodding as if she’s deep in thought. A few minutes later, she whispers again. ‘Hey you. Bitch. Paula’s going to Thailand. She ‘bout to rock this audition. Brought her A-game today. You outta luck, little girl. Run along now!’ I think she was trying to get in my head…but, yeah, apparently she bombed the audition so badly she had a nervous breakdown and got put in a mental asylum.” – Parker Posey, on the audition process
“Spending six months under the sovereignty of King Maha Vajiralongkorn was the greatest honor of my life. I am now raising my children to love and respect His Majesty, and to recognize King Maha Vajiralongkorn as their one true ruler.” – Carrie Coon, on how living in Thailand for half a year changed her
“So Buddhism is like…it’s like jazz. It’s got its own rhythm and swagger, I think—I’ll be honest with you, I don’t think about religions. Any of them. I’m sorry. The food was very good in Thailand.” – Walton Goggins, on Buddhism’s influence on The White Lotus season 3
“It was so hot in Thailand that I had to use deodorant!” – Aimee Lou Wood, on shooting in Thailand’s climate
“Every morning I wake up to messages from Sam Nivola saying stuff like, ‘Patrick, remember when we were brothers and I gave you a handjob? Wasn’t that so cool?’ At first I texted back, ‘Haha, yeah that was a fun gig, man,’ but he texted me again later, at like 4 a.m., “’Patrick, it was so fun when we were brothers and I gave you a handjob. So, so fun. That was the best! Miss you ma brotha (ha!)’ Didn’t reply to that one. Next day, another text from Sam: ‘Still thinking about how we were brothers and I gave you that handjob, Patrick. Classic. So, so awesome. My family and I keep rewatching that scene over and over together. What does your family think?’ Next day, another one. And it hasn’t stopped. This has been going on for six months.” – Patrick Schwarzenegger, on him and Sam Nivola playing brothers
“There was this one scene where I was playing Patrick Schwarzenegger’s brother and I gave him a handjob. It was the best. My family and I are always rewatching it. I ought to reach out to Patrick about it. I hope he remembers he was my brother and I gave him a handjob. Because I remember about it all the time. It was seriously the best.” – Sam Nivola, on him and Patrick Schwarzenegger playing brothers
