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When the cast lineup for Season 3 of “The White Lotus” was announced, it didn’t quite match creator Mike White’s initial vision. One notable change was the recasting of the character Chloe, with Charlotte Le Bon taking over the role. White felt the original actress, Francesca Corney, appeared too youthful for the part. Furthermore, there was buzz about a significant addition to the cast: three-time Oscar nominee Woody Harrelson. Unfortunately, Harrelson eventually declined the chance to join the series.
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When a high-profile actor like Harrelson opts out of a television project, speculation often leans towards issues of finance or personal pride. However, Harrelson’s reasons were neither. In an interview with The Daily Beast, Harrelson explained that his decision was due to a shift in the production schedule, which clashed with a previously planned family commitment.
“I was all set to be a part of ‘The White Lotus’ and was really looking forward to it,” Harrelson shared. “Regrettably, when their filming dates changed, it conflicted with a family vacation I had planned, leading to a very tough choice on my part.”
With Harrelson almost joining the clever and tumultuous “White Lotus” Season 3, the question arises: which character would he have portrayed? Initially considered for Rick Hatchett, a role eventually played by Walton Goggins, Harrelson was ultimately set to play Rick’s friend Frank, a part that went to Sam Rockwell. Harrelson confirmed this to The Daily Beast and praised Rockwell’s performance, admitting, “It seems it was meant to be, as I doubt I could have matched Sam’s phenomenal portrayal.”
This aligns with comments from Rockwell’s partner and fellow “The White Lotus” Season 3 actor, Leslie Gibb, who spoke to CNN about the whirlwind nature of Rockwell’s casting. “He came on board at the last minute,” Gibb revealed. “It was finalized just a couple of weeks before filming began.”
Who would Woody Harrelson have played on The White Lotus?
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Knowing that Woody Harrelson could have been a part of the incisive, chaotic, and entertaining “White Lotus” Season 3, a pretty obvious follow-up question arises: Who would he have played? While Harrelson was on the table for Rick Hatchett (played in the finished product by Walton Goggins), it seems that at the end of the day he would have tackled the role of Rick’s friend Frank, who ended up being played by Sam Rockwell. Harrelson himself confirmed this to The Daily Beast, and admitted that Rockwell nailed the role. “Things must be meant to be though because I couldn’t have done as fantastic a job as Sam, who is killing it,” Harrelson said.
This falls in line with what Rockwell’s partner and fellow “The White Lotus” Season 3 star Leslie Gibb told CNN about the actor taking the role of Frank on a very short notice. “He was a last minute,” Gibb said about Rockwell’s casting. “That came in last minute, like maybe two weeks before they were going to film it.”
Considering Rockwell’s masterful delivery of Frank’s much-lauded monologue in the episode “Full-Moon Party,” it’s hard to see anyone else playing the role. Still, the idea of Harrelson on “The White Lotus” is an intriguing one. Perhaps the actor will find his way to one of the titular hotel chain’s reliably dramatic resorts one of these seasons.Â