Natasha Rothwell says The White Lotus season 3 is worth the wait!
The actress, 44, who took on the role of Belinda in The White Lotus season one, shared her excitement and admitted she was blown away by the highly anticipated third installment.
“I would be on set, even when it wasn’t my day shooting, just to watch the magic unfold,” she told Entertainment Weekly of filming the Mike White-led anthology. “And I would be gagged — as if I hadn’t already read all the scripts! I’d be like, ‘Oh, s—.’ I really do think that this season is magic. That’s the only word.”
The details of The White Lotus season 3, which will take place in Thailand, have been kept tightly under wraps. Rothwell confessed that the pressure to keep mum has been “unbearable.”
“My hairdresser, the cab driver, people have been shaking me down for information and I’m just like, ‘I’ve signed my life away. I can’t tell you anything,’ ” she joked.
Fans last saw Belinda as the spa manager at the White Lotus’ Maui location. After Belinda helped resort guest Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) mourn the death of her father, Tanya floated the idea of financing Belinda’s dreams of opening her own wellness business. But at the end of her trip, Belinda’s hopes were crushed when Tanya rescinded her offer after meeting Greg (Jon Gries), who would later end up plotting her murder.
Rothwell told the outlet that Belinda is returning to the series with “main character energy” and gave fans insight into how the fan-favorite character will return to the show.
“She’s still working at the White Lotus, and she’s in Thailand doing sort of an exchange program to learn more about the wellness programs that the Thailand White Lotus offers,” she explained. “She’s going to be a guest for the first time, even though she’s taking classes and it’s a work trip.”
She continued of her character, “She’s staying at the hotel, which is something that she hasn’t done before, and so we get to see her really dip her toe in the other side of life of the upstairs/downstairs of White Lotus.”
“It’s a really cool exploration of status and her journey and reconciling the fact that her dreams of owning the spa never came to fruition, so what do you do? ‘I’m going to pick myself up and learn something new,’ and still grow in her own way,” Rothwell added.
Throughout White Lotus season 2, the actress said Belinda has been “trying to dig herself out of that sadness and really be inspired again.”
“Her purpose for coming to Thailand is to have a dream again,” she said.
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White Lotus season 3 premieres Feb. 16, 2025, at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max.
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