‘The White Lotus’ incest scenes led to actors backing out of auditions
After the success of seasons one and two, it would probably be expected that an audition for The White Lotus would be at the top of any actor’s wishlist. However, given the taboo nature of one of the season three storylines, the casting director revealed that people were put off the roles due to the incest.
As a show, The White Lotus has never shied away from shocks. The storylines have always existed on the melodramatic end of the spectrum and have regularly used a disregard for the socially acceptable to do that. In season three, this instinct got stepped up a notch as the latest episodes have been considered as the most controversial in the show’s history.
In particular, the storyline between Saxon and Lochlan Ratliff, played by Patrick Schwarzenegger and Sam Nivola, has left viewers shocked. In the TV show, the two brothers engage in an incestuous threesome.
It was shocking for the audience, but it was also shocking for actors as the show’s team revealed that the moment in the script seemed to put people off auditioning for the roles of the brothers, despite the high-profile popularity of the project.
“Finding the Ratliff children took a little more legwork, more auditions,” casting director Meredith Tucker told The Hollywood Reporter about the difficulty they had filling these two roles, “For that stuff with the brothers, we had to tell people beforehand. We said, ‘There is going to be some same-sex kissing and stuff. Are you comfortable with that?’”
The scene was sensitive and revealing, and on top of the obvious taboo of the topic, the brothers were in their 20s, so a young actor would have to step up into a sensitive role. Tucker said, “I think maybe one kid for Sam’s role dropped out, but some of these kids were barely 18, so I could understand.”
When they found Schwarzenegger and Nivola and wanted to cast them, they prayed the two actors would be brave enough, stating, “When we sent the scripts to Patrick and Sam, Mike and I were both like, ‘I hope they don’t drop out.’ Mike made me text Patrick. We were anxious.”
Luckily, both actors were on board, and the show managed to cast two of this season’s most dramatic characters.
The White Lotus series finale is set to air on HBO on April 6th.
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