The White Lotus star Natasha Rothwell has spoken about her return to the show as Belinda Lindsey, explaining that the spirit of one iconic character “lives on”.
The star appeared in the first season of the HBO anthology show, which follows the guests and residents of the titular hotel chain. After skipping the second season, it was revealed that Rothwell would reprise her role as Belinda for the upcoming third season, which premieres next week.
The second season featured a notable death in the shape of Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya McQuoid, and whilst Rothwell shared that Belinda may not necessarily know of this development, the star did exclusively tell Digital Spy that Tanya’s attitude would be present in Belinda.
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“I think the show’s tendency to delight and surprise remains the same,” said Rothwell. “It’s a common denominator. I can’t confirm or deny what she knows and when she knows it. I think the spirit of Tanya, even if it isn’t scripted, it’s in her.
“She was so incredibly impacted by this exchange with this woman who she genuinely cared for and really wanted to help. I think in a position of service, I think those kinds of interactions stay with you.
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“It can be triggering to be in a situation where you are now sitting next to a guest that has the potential to hurt you in the same way. I think audiences are going to worry and root for her,” she continued.
Whilst Tanya’s spirit may live on in Belinda, Rothwell also spoke about the notion that her character serves as a barometer for human decency in the show, explaining that a big part of her career focuses "on centring on marginalised voices".
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The star added that it was "a privilege to play a character that can be that morality compass and comedically so".
“There’s been quizzes where you can figure out which White Lotus character you are and people will post like ‘Yes, I’m Belinda’ and then other people realise they’re Jake Lacy from season one and they’re like ‘F**k, I gotta work on some stuff’.
“So, I think it’s cool to carry that into season 3, but I think in this season you see her sort of flirt with this morality and try to figure out how much of that is innate and how much of that is performative and I think that is a cool kind of dance that you get to see this season.”
The White Lotus season 3 premieres on Sky Atlantic and HBO on February 16.
Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
Emily is an experienced freelance entertainment writer and editor, reporting on all things TV, film, soaps and showbiz. An NCTJ-qualified journalist, with a First Class Honours degree in Journalism from the University of Sussex, Emily is a former Deputy News Editor and Evening News Editor at Digital Spy. She has previously worked at Hello magazine, BBC South News and GoodtoKnow.
A small and big-screen obsessive – with subscriptions to every TV and film service under the sun – Emily knows her movie stars from soap stars, and is always clued up on the latest reality show dumping, just-dropped trailer or off-screen spat. She's interviewed a number of celebrities over the years, with highlights including The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett and GMB's Kate Garraway (who "loved" her trousers).
Emily counts Sharon Horgan and Julia Davis as her TV heroes, and is a loyal Wes Anderson fan. LinkedIn
