Easily the most viral moment fromThe White LotusSeason 3 that remains burned in viewers' heads isSam Rockwell’s spellbinding, insane monologue about sex, Buddhism, and the feeling that he was born as the wrong race and gender. Opposite a hilariously aghastWalton Goggins, his character Frank gives all the intimate details of why he moved to Thailand and his countless nights sleeping with men and women while experimenting with the deeper feelings that, maybe, he was meant to be an Asian girl. It’s an uncomfortable, mesmerizing, and darkly comedic moment made all the better by the Oscar winner’s surprise appearance and deadpan delivery alongsideGoggins’s increasingly stunned/horrified facial expressionsand quiet mhmms. Most impressively, however, is the fact that Rockwell nailed the whole speech on his first take.
Rockwell sat down withDax Shepardin the most recent episode ofArmchair Expert, where they discussed his brief but memorableWhite Lotuscameo. Rockwell is famously pickywith the roles he takes on, and he rarely appears on television, making his appearance in such a strange sequence all the more surprising. When he was brought aboard, he recalled making some quick suggestions to series creatorMike Whitebefore diving headfirst into the part. “Yeah, I sort of pitched some things to Mike White, he went for some of it and then, yeah, just went in there and did it,” he said. “Shaved my head and put a tattoo on it and some scars and that was it, yeah.” The final speech featured very little improvisation, with White penning most of the shocking details that came out of theThree Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouristar’s mouth.
The monologue isn’t particularly short, spanning around five minutes, where Frank regales Rick about his bizarre journey to sobriety and abstinence. Rockwell told Shepard and co-hostMonica Padmanthat he was prepared to flub it in some way and even requested an earpiece to get his lines if he began to stumble. Despite taking precautions, he never needed any help. Moreover, he gave credit to White forthe absurd and dark writingthat helped get him so invested in the scene:
“You know, they had an earwig. I said prepare an earwig just in case I get in trouble, and then I didn’t need it.I did it in one take, and then I think we continued to do one-takers and not break it up too much. Mike’s just amazing, you know,he’s like a Paddy Chayefsky kind of writer.
Walton Goggins Was Excited To Team With His “Best Friend” on ‘The White Lotus’ Season 3
Season 3 of White’s scintillating resort-set anthology seriesfound even more successas it followed a new set of guests facing a journey of drama, spirituality, sexuality, revenge, and more in Thailand. For Goggins’s Rick, his stay at the resort alongsidehis girlfriend Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) was all about seeking closure for his father’s mysterious death by finding the man he believes killed him. Meeting Frank is just a detour on his quest when he arrives in Bangkok, allowing him to revisit an old party animal friend and retrieve a gun to get his vengeance.
For Goggins himself, however, working with Rockwell was a joy, and their shocking interaction was a highlight of filming. He told TV Insider back in March, “Sam is not only my best friend, he’s one of my heroes. He trusts me and I trust him and…we have this symbiotic kind of listening relationship, so he’s going through it, and I’m going through it and listening for the first time every time, and it changes my reactions.” On top of the performances, their bond also helped elevate their performances intheFalloutstar’seyes and made for “some of the best times that I had makingThe White Lotus.”
All episodes ofThe White Lotus, including Rockwell’s monologue opposite Goggins, are now streaming on Max. Season 4is already securedas well, meaning more sun-soaked drama is yet to come. Stay tuned here at Collider for more on the hit series as it eyes its next vacation.
The White Lotus
Sources:Armchair Expert,TV Insider
