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Buzz Feed
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
17 TV And Movie Scenes That Went Way Too Far
I'm no stranger to an uncomfy, controversial, or gory on-screen moment. Sometimes you gotta cross the line to get a point across — and that might mean including a scene that makes people squirm. As someone who worships Breaking Bad and Seven, I can understand and respect that — sometimes you just gotta put a severed head on a turtle, or in a box. WHAT'S IN THE BOOOOOOX??? But I'm sure you can also agree that there IS a line. There's certainly such thing as being too inappropriate, too gory, or too problematic, especially when the storyline appears to lack a real purpose. And today, we're gonna highlight my picks — the TV shows and movies that went TOO. FREAKIN'. FAR. In addition to BrBa and Seven, I'll also mention that I gave super-high ratings to toThe Silence of the Lambs and Fight Club (my fave movie of all time). If you're looking for credibility, there it is. I ain't no snowflake. I'll start with a more recent one. We're all aware Another Simple Favor starring Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick just came out. Well, there's a totally senseless plotline in it where Blake's character Emily has a few romantic encounters with her twin sister. Yeah, I'm serious. In the movie, the twins kiss in more than one scene. As if the first kissing scene isn't enough, later on, one sister also drugs the other, then gets on top of her and kisses her. And speaking of incest (not a phrase I ever thought I'd write on the internet), we can't NOT talk about Saxon and Lochlan from The White Lotus. I refused to jump on the bandwagon of this show solely to avoid this my mother described it to me as "the most disgusting thing" she's ever seen on TV. ICYMI, we're talking about Season 3. Saxon and Lochlan are brothers, and their relationship quickly starts becoming uncomfortably close. Their first kiss is in Episode 5, and that quickly develops into a full-blown sexual relationship. AND THEY'RE BROTHERS. Mike White, I loved you on Survivor, but can I just Perhaps the most upsetting scene I've ever seen on TV was the bathtub scene in 13 Reasons Why. The whole first season of the show is about Hannah Baker's suicide, and her "reasons why." But in a now-deleted scene, they depicted her actual suicide in way, way, way too much detail. The show, which is based on a young-adult novel, appeared to have extremely negative consequences for teens as a whole. 13 Reasons Why was actually "associated with [an] increase in youth suicide rates," which is so beyond tragic. Thankfully, they deleted the scene from the show, but I really wish younger me never saw it. Virtually every single millennial watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But perhaps you don't remember that scene in Season 6 where Spike sexually assaults Buffy. She ends up defending herself, but the whole thing is extremely uncomfortable and difficult to watch. And it's not just viewers who hate the scene. James Marsters, who plays Spike, said the show "sent [him] into therapy," and this scene is a big reason for that. "It's a problematic scene for a lot of people who like the show. And it's the darkest professional day of my life," he said. I could name so many scenes from Euphoria that I felt crossed the line, but as someone who 100% has emetophobia, that hot tub vomiting scene in Season 2 was just too much. This one is pretty self-explanatory — in the scene, Cassie, played by Sydney Sweeney, vomits all over the hot tub. And it's pretty revolting. I guess you could make arguments for why this was important, but I argue it was way too much to ever justify. Sydney Sweeney herself even said the director "just wanted vomit everywhere," and she dubbed it "the most disgusting thing [she's] ever experienced." I'll defend Glee forever and always, but I can't deny that several of those storylines were problematic. The one that consistently rubs me the wrong way is in Season 4, when Marley develops an eating disorder, largely thanks to manipulative cheerleader-slash-mean-girl Kitty. Marley ends up fainting onstage during a competition, and the whole club basically blames her for the team's disqualification. Part of the reason why this storyline bothers me so much is we don't really get any closure — and with such a serious topic, that's a massive shame. Kitty ends up revealing she essentially caused Marley's eating disorder, and because they're in a super tense situation when Kitty spills this secret, Marley basically just forgives her, and we don't hear about the situation again. Season 7 of The Walking Dead opens with a couple of excessively bloody kills, one being a fan-fave character since the show started. I won't name the characters just in case you're extremely behind on this show, but it definitely pushed boundaries in how brutal the kills were — almost to an unnecessary degree. Some fans even said these deaths were some of the bloodiest ones in the history of TV, which is a LOT to say for this show and TV in general. I get that the premise of The Walking Dead means blood and gore, but at some point, it's just excessive. Especially when it's a character we all adored so low-key felt personal. Can I be brutally honest for a sec? Virtually everything in the Fifty Shades movies can be classified as "too far" in my books. But there's perhaps one collection of scenes most people can probably agree are too much: anything that happens in the Red Room (AKA basically Christian's BDSM room). Not only are these scenes uncomfy for the audience to witness — for seemingly no reason at all — but it was also not fun for the actors themselves. "Some of the Red Room stuff was uncomfortable," Jamie Dornan admitted. "There were times when Dakota [Johnson] was not wearing much, and I had to do stuff to her that I'd never choose to do to a woman." IDK about you, but that makes me shudder. This one's an unpopular opinion, so brace yourself: The Substance. I get that this movie is a body horror, but the entire last portion, where Sue and Elizabeth "fight," ruined the entire movie for me. And I'm not the only one who thinks so. So much blood and gore, so long, and all while lacking a true point or moral, it truly feels. My disdain with this part is about more than just gore. What could've been a poignant ending that makes a profound statement about aging and feminism ended up being a blood-fight, a mockery, women's battles with aging and societal sexism reduced to a bloody outburst. And I found that even more disgusting than the blood itself. Sorry for getting all heated!!! I still love you, Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley. This is just my opinion. OK, now let's talk about Game of Thrones. You all knew this was coming, didn't you? I literally couldn't get past the first episode of this show because of all the sexual assault — not just the volume, but those scenes just seemed to last forever. Never mind all the incest, too. Again, I understand these scenes serve a purpose, but it's the excess that bothers a lot of people. There are just so many violent sexual assault and incest scenes in this show, at a certain point, you have to consider whether it's even worth watching the show as a whole. Game of Thrones is perhaps the most well-known show for its brutal sexual assault scenes, but not enough people talk about Outlander. There are a few sexual assault scenes in this show that fans think went too far — in particular, the scenes at the end of Season 1 were called "the most graphic and disturbing rape scenes ever to air in the history of television." Sam Heughan, who plays Jamie Fraser, talked about how uncomfy it was for him to shoot that part in Season 1. "The cock shot was unnecessary and did betray my trust in the creative team a bit," he said. He also noted that he didn't think the nudity added much substance to the plot: "This wasn't a moment where I felt that being naked would add to the horror of what Jamie undergoes." And as a viewer, I have to sympathize. All the sexualization of Angela in American Beauty is just awful to watch now, not least because her character is underage. Angela is supposed to be 17, a friend of protagonist Lester's (Kevin Spacey) daughter. People agree the entire movie has aged like milk, but it's especially difficult to watch Lester's dream sequence, where he fantasizes about touching Angela in ways we can all agree are extremely gross. Can I say it again? ANGELA IS UNDERAGE. Plus, it's his daughter's friend. That's not hot, it's CREEPY. The plot of the entire movie feels problematic to many of us now, but I'd like to think we should've known better when this came out in 1999. You is seriously one of my favourite shows of the past few years, so there's not much I can critique about it. But one part was a bit too gross for me: the montage in Season 2 that flips between Joe (Penn Badgley) putting a body in a meat grinder and Love (Victoria Pedretti) cooking a meal (yes, with meat in it). See what they did there? Filmography-wise, I get it, and I can appreciate it. But as a viewer, I physically couldn't watch it. Like, did we really have to see the intricate process of Joe putting a literal dead body in a meat grinder? And the connotations of Love cooking a meal at the same time hard to ignore. Several of the most renowned sitcoms of all time have pulled scenes since they first aired because of characters appearing in blackface. Namely, The Office, Scrubs, and Community — but you might not know that 30 Rock pulled a whopping FOUR episodes in 2020 because of blackface, one with John Hamm as a guest star. Tina Fey, who created the series (duh), issued an apology when the episodes were taken down. "I understand now that 'intent' is not a free pass for white people to use these images. I apologise for pain they have caused," she wrote. "Going forward, no comedy-loving kid needs to stumble on these tropes and be stung by their ugliness." I've said it before and I'll say it again: I can appreciate a raunchy joke. But I can't justify the one scene in Sausage Party that seemingly makes a sexual assault joke — with a juice box, of all things. In the scene, the bottom of an injured juice box starts leaking, and the antagonist drinks from the hole. Then he says, "If you tell anyone about this, I'm gonna deny it, bro." This is another one that deeply offends me. Who thought it was a good idea to include a (I'm assuming) sexual assault joke in an animated comedy movie? Here's the truth: it's just not funny. That line of dialogue feels disgusting and triggering, and takes the "joke" way, way, way over the edge. This one is kinda controversial, but I don't think I've ever been as passionate as when this came out. Years before "gaslighting" was a term everyone knew, we heard it on Season 17 of The Bachelorette. Yes, I'm talking about contestant Greg Grippo, who Katie Thurston accused of gaslighting. The reason I feel this went "too far" is, yeah, that's someone's (ahem, Katie's) actual trauma displayed on live TV. Greg's actions hit way too close to home for many viewers. And seeing how many people were #TeamGreg after the fact was…really disheartening. TBH, this was the reason I stopped watching The Bachelor franchise. Greg later admitted he "came off like an ass," but for me, it's too little, too late. Finally, let's chat about that absurd scene in the 2006 movie Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, where Sacha Baron Cohen pretends to kidnap Pamela Anderson. The whole thing is staged, but the audience doesn't know that, so they essentially fight to try and save Pam — which "accidentally injured" her in real life. This scene is supposed to be light, and all in good fun, but clearly there were deeper consequences we didn't see at the time. In 2019, Sacha also revealed that controversy surrounding this scene might have contributed to Pamela's divorce to Kid Rock. So yeah, this one's got a lotttt of lore. Which TV or movie scene do you think crossed the line? Maybe it was too inappropriate, gross, or problematic? Tell me in the comments below, or fill out this form to stay anonymous! And make sure to follow BuzzFeed Canada on TikTok and Instagram for more!
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Filming ‘The White Lotus' terrified Sam Nivola more than once
"This interview is just gonna be a list of my fears," Sam Nivola says with a laugh. The 21-year-old actor is looking back at his breakthrough performance as people-pleasing Lochlan Ratliff in Season 3 of HBO's The White Lotus and, for the second time in a 20-minute interview with Gold Derby, has referenced working through a phobia. As part of his first-ever (near) death scene — the result of Lochlan accidentally drinking a poisoned protein shake in the finale — Nivola shot a sequence in which the teen imagined himself drowning. It was filmed toward the end of the cast's lengthy stay in Thailand, when Nivola happened to have two weeks between call times. "It's always weird as an actor when you're not shooting every day. You can sort of psych yourself out. It's better when you're working constantly and you don't have the time to really get nervous or overthink things," he says. "I'm a very claustrophobic person, so I was just thinking about this thing, just freaking out for two weeks." More from GoldDerby Adria Arjona on breaking 'Star Wars' ground with intense 'Andor' scenes: 'I found it really important' TV showrunner panel: 'The Better Sister,' 'Deli Boys,' 'Overcompensating,' 'Shifting Gears,' and 'Three Women' 'Three Women' showrunner Laura Eason talks courage, desire, and 'superhero' intimacy coordinators Adding to the nervous anticipation, White filmed two versions of Lochlan's surreal white-light moment: the one viewers ultimately saw and one that involved Lochy emerging from a zipped body bag in the water. "I did it, and it was fine, but it was a full-ass day of being in this body bag with a can of air which, I'm sure, for lots of people who have their scuba license, is normal, but I do not, and that shit scares the fuck out of me," he says. "I had to learn how to clear the water out of my nose and everything, and do all this while blind underwater because I didn't have goggles on." SEE The White Lotus star Sam Nivola talks Lochlan's latest desperate act, teases 'chaotic, complex, devastating' finale An underwater speaker on a Bangkok soundstage allowed him to hear when "Action!" was called. "I'd take a big breath and then drop the can of air, and then unzip myself and climb out, and then I had to die in the water and start to float back down. But in order to float back down, you need to have no air in your lungs, because if you have air in your lungs, you float up, it makes you buoyant. So I had to time it perfectly so that I had little enough air in my lungs that I would start to float down and look dead, but enough air in my lungs to make it to the top and breathe without suffocating," he explains with another laugh. "So it was a delicate, delicate art that we mastered over the course of a day, and it was really fun in the end. I'm happy I did it, but it was so intense." To prep for the emotional side of the sequence, Nivola watched interviews with people who've had near-death experiences or flatlined before having their heart restarted and studied "what you see and what you're thinking, and how it's kind of thrilling in a weird way, apparently," he says. "But at the end of the day, I was really trying to wrap my head around the line that Lochlan says, which is, 'I think I saw God.' It feels very important, because it's my character's last line, and obviously this season is about spirituality, and religion to a greater extent. Does that mean my character has changed and gone through some period of growth? Or does it mean he's sort of grasping at straws and trying to try on religion in his last moment in the show and that's still not the right thing for him?" Stefano Delia/HBO Nivola's claustrophobia extends to a fear of large crowds in places where he feels trapped — which made filming Episode 5 at a real, packed Full Moon Party on the island of Koh Phangan "terrifying," he admits. "You have to take a boat to get [there], and then you can't leave until the boat goes home, which is like 2 in the morning or something," he says. "The boat that we took out had to turn back halfway through, because there was a big storm and it was so bumpy that we nearly capsized. And then we finally went back to the party, and it was so intense having to perform as an actor while you can't even hear anything, because there's like fucking house music throbbing in your eardrum at a million decibels, and there's just a million people that are high on God knows what, with their sweaty bodies slamming into you. But, of course, it was also incredibly fun and such a unique experience to shoot at something like that. ... After we finished the scene, we all just stayed there and partied and danced around for a while. It was an unforgettable experience, but it was also sort of terrifying." While The White Lotus aired earlier this spring, Nivola was busy in Wilmington, N.C., filming the upcoming Bobby Farrelly-directed comedy Driver's Ed and didn't find himself out and about enough to be accosted by fans wanting to dissect scenes like Lochlan's drug-fueled yacht threesome with temptress Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon) and Lochlan's finance bro brother, Saxon (). Now, though, he's been hearing the same thing again and again: "Probably five times a day, someone is like, 'I'm happy you didn't die!' My rehearsed answer is, 'Yeah, me, too!'" Nivola says. Thanks to the success of the show, the son of actors Alessandro Nivola and Emily Mortimer has now experienced another first: being offered roles in films without auditioning. He's also landed some theater auditions, which he hopes will soon pay off. "I really, really want to do a play," he says, adding that he's currently writing one with a pal. "[The White Lotus] is such a machine for catapulting people into a space where they are going to have opportunities to continue to work at the highest level, and I'm crossing my fingers that I'm an example of that because I love doing what I do, and to continue to get opportunities to do it is just like a dream come true. I feel like the luckiest guy in the world." He'd like to balance more A-list productions that allow him to continue to learn opposite veterans he looks up to, such as his White Lotus parents Jason Isaacs and , with making low-budget films and black box theater with his friends. "I'm so young that I feel like every day, I learn so much about everything, not just acting," he says. "I feel like I'm at the age where I'm just such a sponge for my life, and I'm just trying to soak it all in." Best of GoldDerby TV showrunner panel: 'The Better Sister,' 'Deli Boys,' 'Overcompensating,' 'Shifting Gears,' and 'Three Women' 'Three Women' showrunner Laura Eason talks courage, desire, and 'superhero' intimacy coordinators 'Overcompensating' showrunner Scott King on Prime Video comedy: 'There are no heroes or villains — everyone is just a f-king mess' Click here to read the full article.
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The Independent
14-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
The problem with this ‘incredibly harmful' White Lotus scene
The White Lotus is a show where a lot of sex happens and many taboos are explored. For instance, in episode seven, the impact on one character of watching his parents having sex as a child and how that affected his sexuality is talked about. Given all of this, it might seem like no big deal to feature an incest storyline, which this series did. But, as researchers of sibling sexual behaviour-abuse, we were particularly perturbed by the show's take on this issue. In episode five, we see holidaying brothers Lochlan and Saxon Ratliff kiss after a night of partying with drugs and alcohol. This quickly escalates in the next episode, where Saxon learns through flashbacks and conversations that Lochlan 'jerked [him] off.' Child sexual abuse, harmful sexual behaviour among children and young people and intra-familial sexual abuse are not new topics. It's only recently, however, that sibling sexual behaviour-abuse has garnered similar levels of attention. While this topic does come under the definition of intra-familial sexual abuse, conversations about this have tended to focus on intergenerational cases. For instance, parent or step-parent and child. However, sibling sexual behaviour-abuse is thought to be one of the most prolific forms of intrafamilial sexual abuse. Research estimates that it may be five times more prevalent than parent-child sexual abuse, yet is rarely spoken about due to the taboos that exist around children and sex – but also the shame that many families feel when experiencing this issue. Mainstream explorations on shows such as White Lotus could be incredibly helpful in spreading awareness about sibling sexual behaviour-abuse. As experts in sexual behaviours and sexual abuse, we believe the show's handling of an incredibly complex and traumatic issue is insensitive and sensational. Far from spreading awareness, this storyline is simply shocking and inaccurate. We would argue that it actively harms the important research that is only just beginning in helping those who experience this sort of abuse and those who work with them. Take the way Saxon finds out. It's the next morning. He had blacked out the night before and fragments of what happened are slowly coming back to him. He suspects something bad happened but confirmation is delivered in a matter-of-fact way by the two young women who were with him that night. Rather than expressing horror or concern, both young women are very calm about what happened, letting him know his brother 'jerked him off'. They then laugh and are dismissive of Saxon's horror. In this way, the abuse is normalised as one of them says: 'Everyone has their thing – it's fine.' This would seem to imply that sexual behaviour between siblings is a sexual preference rather than a traumatic situation that needs specific support and intervention. While Saxon and Lochlan express disgust when they remember what has happened, this is not portrayed in any great depth. Instead, it is framed in a way that is not too dissimilar to how someone may respond to a consensual sexual encounter they may regret after a night out – rather than a serious sexual experience with a sibling. In our research, we found a key reason why people don't report instances is that the behaviour may sit within a context of family dysfunction, so it is difficult for those victims to recognise it. This is why early developmentally appropriate relationships and sex education is important. Serious family dysfunction is evident within the programme with the mother showing disconnection and the father exhibiting signs of depression, suicide ideation and fantasies of killing members of his family. The children also have unusual relationships with each other where boundaries of sexuality are blurred. In episode one, Saxon states: 'Brother and sisters don't sleep together when they have fully formed genitals.' Later, he calls his sister 'pretty hot' and muses about her virginity. He also asks Lochlan, 'What kind of porn do you like?' and says, 'How am I going to jerk off with you in here all week?' before walking naked to the bathroom to masturbate. The deep shame that is strongly linked to families that experience such abuse is also was not explored in any depth. After the initial act and flashbacks the sibling sexual behaviour is not mentioned in any great depth again. The only real acknowledgement we get is in the final episode when Saxon rebuffs Lochlan's wishes to spend time together. Noticing Saxon is not OK, Lochlan says: 'All you care about is getting off and I saw you lying there and I thought you looked a little left out … and you know, I'm a pleaser. I just want to give everyone what they want and I'm in a family full of narcissists.' This complicated family dynamic is not explored and the abusive behaviour isn't even properly condemned. 'Dude, let's just drop this forever, please,' Saxon simply retorts – and the series does, as the incident is swept away as a small sub-plot, and lost in rising tide of drama in the rest of the finale. TV shows can be incredibly powerful tools in spreading awareness and increasing public knowledge about how to spot, respond to and prevent issues such as sibling sexual behaviour-abuse. It could have explored the nature of the behaviour, the links to family factors and the interventions that are needed to support disclosures and recovery from this type of sexual abuse and behaviour-based family issue. The White Lotus, however, did not take this opportunity. Instead, we are left guessing, as the Ratliffs sail back to their lives, how this complex and traumatic incident in the brothers' lives came to pass and how it will affect them in the future. Sophie King-Hill is an Associate Professor at the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham. Kieran McCartan is a Professor in Criminology at the University of the West of England.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fans Realize 'White Lotus' Creamer Contained a Season 3 Finale Easter Egg: 'Everyone Wash Your Blenders'
When Coffee Mate announced a special White Lotus creamer in January, many fans thought the flavor — piña colada — was simply a nod to the show's resort setting. But the tropical drink turned out to play a pivotal role in this week's finale. In the episode, which aired Sunday, April 6, Timothy Ratliff (Jason Isaacs) blends piña coladas with seeds from poisonous pong-pong tree fruit and gives out glasses to wife Victoria (Parker Posey), son Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and daughter Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook). He tells youngest child Lochlan (Sam Nivola) to drink a Coke instead. However, Timothy has second thoughts once his family begins consuming the dangerous beverage and slaps it out of Saxon's hand, telling everyone the "coconut milk is off." The next morning, Lochlan makes a protein shake without washing out the poisonous seeds in the blender, subsequently vomits and becomes unconscious. Timothy rushes to revive Lochlan, who later wakes up. After watching season 3's dramatic conclusion, fans were quick to spot the connection between the deadly drink and the fruity creamer in their refrigerator. 'I got this back in February being like wow what a random flavor for the Thailand season,' wrote a TikTok user who goes by thepastylatina over footage zooming in on the product. 'Not Mike White making our coffee an Easter egg,' the accompanying video caption read, referring to the show's creator. 'And PSA everyone wash your blenders before re-using plz.' Commenters left playful replies, with one writing, 'Wow 10/10 marketing.' 'Girl, wash your blender, coffee mugs, spoons…NOW,' someone else wrote. Related: Death, Poison and Blackmail: Every Wild Moment from the The White Lotus Season 3 Finale Related: That Tree From The White Lotus Is Real — Could the Real-Life Poisonous Plant Actually Kill Someone? When Coffee Mate first revealed the White Lotus collection, which also includes a Thai Iced Coffee variety, the brand said both items would give 'majestic, five-star vacation vibes.' 'Nothing screams serenity quite like the sweet combination of coconut and tangy pineapple,' read a description of the piña colada flavor in the press release. The release also encouraged viewers to use the creamers, which were available at grocery stores nationwide for a limited time and cost $4.49 for a 28-oz. bottle, in their favorite soda to serve at Sunday night watch parties for the HBO the original article on People
Los Angeles Times
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
‘The White Lotus' siblings break down the dysfunction, entitlement and, yes, that scene
The three Ratliff siblings have scattered to Los Angeles and New York, far from the tropical maladies of Thailand and the third season of 'The White Lotus.' They're ready to talk about it all — the incest, the North Carolina accents, their deeply screwed-up family. And yet, on one level, Sarah Catherine Hook, Sam Nivola and Patrick Schwarzenegger will forever remain Piper, Lochlan and Saxon, joined at the hip by a TV series that fans can't stop talking about. 'The three of us, we are siblings for life now,' Hook says. 'We couldn't get rid of each other even if we tried.' Not that they've tried. After a seven-month shoot in and around a luxury hotel in the Gulf of Thailand, it seems a certain amount of postpartum longing still lingers. 'We don't even talk anymore,' Schwarzenegger laments. 'Don't spread lies like that,' Hook responds. 'Patrick texts us every day: 'You don't call. You guys don't care about me anymore.' Bro, we just FaceTimed last night. Shut up.'' They seem a good deal happier than their characters on the series, which is to be expected. The Ratliff kids, their mom, Victoria (Parker Posey), and their dad, Timothy (Jason Isaacs), are sterling examples of a 'White Lotus' specialty: the Ugly American abroad, spoiled and clueless, mired in family dysfunction. Saxon is the preening alpha male, vocally on the prowl for sex, telling his little brother that he needs to drink more protein shakes and man up. Lochlan lives in his brother's shadow, seeking Saxon's approval even as he seems quietly terrified and repelled. Piper seems to be the sane one; she wants to stay in Thailand and spend a year at a Buddhist monastery, far away from her family. But beneath her white guilt she's ultimately just as attached to the creature comforts of American wealth as the rest of her family. Emotionally healthy people are about as rare on 'The White Lotus' as cloudy days in paradise. But series creator Mike White doesn't write caricatures. The Ratliffs, with their North Carolina money and the neuroses to which they generally remain oblivious, are also deeply human. If they weren't, Nivola says, they'd be hell to play. 'You always have to love your character,' he said. 'You have to relate to them, because if you don't, you're just totally disconnected and you have no way in. And that's a struggle for everyone in this show because to varying degrees, every character is more f— up than the average person.' (Lochlan always did have a philosophical streak.) 'The White Lotus' always makes tongues wag, with plot points and character turns interminably dissected on the internet (and in articles like this one). This season's biggest talker was a drug-infused threesome between Saxon, Lochlan and a local woman, Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon). At one point, Lochlan, ever the people pleaser, notices that his older brother is idle and decides to, er, lend him a hand. Ick. Once the blackout fog clears and the shame descends, Saxon allows some rare moments of vulnerability to penetrate his swaggering façade. He suddenly seems real. That's why Schwarzenegger was grateful for the season's queasiest plot turn. 'I'm kind of relieved at how well it played,' he said. 'I think I'm a little bit different than Lochlan, in that my character was so hated by so many people for the first few weeks of the season. It was a relief that people started to feel bad for me, or come around to enjoying me. It allowed for my character to have this full-blown existential crisis that we got to display onscreen.' The Ratliffs also had viewers talking about … talking. As the parents of the family, Isaacs and Posey used thick North Carolina accents, which tended to slosh around some depending on how much booze and anti-anxiety medication were in play. But the kids, with the exception of some open vowels here and there, sounded like pretty generic young Americans. Like everything in the series, this was by design. 'We were instructed to not have accents, to let the parents have them,' said Hook, who was born and raised in Alabama (and doesn't have an accent). 'There is more of this neutral American sound with the younger generation, and part of that is just their exposure to the media. Though I did throw in a few 'Y'alls' here and there because that's my Southern thing that I keep with me.' Now Hook, Nivola and Schwarzenegger face life after 'White Lotus' — and a sense that future projects will have a hard time living up to what they just experienced. 'We're screwed,' Hook said. 'What's better than 'The White Lotus?' People keep telling me, 'Oh, so many opportunities to come.' I'm like, 'Nah, dog. This was the opportunity.' They're not just spoiled for future work but for future accommodations as well. 'The f— hotels,' Nivola said. 'I just stayed in a Marriott for a month, and I felt like such an a—. I was like, 'There's no cold plunge!'' Typical Americans.
