5 Actors Who Almost Starred In HBO's The White Lotus

It's starting to feel like just about everyone in Hollywood wants a role on the buzzy, scandalous HBO murder mystery rich people breaking bad drama "The White Lotus." Across only three seasons, "The White Lotus" has brought newfound acclaim to veteran actors like Jennifer Coolidge and Michael Imperioli and newcomers like Aimee Lou Wood and Haley Lu Richardson alike. With the third season bringing in the show's biggest ratings yet, competition for a spot in the upcoming fourth season is surely one of the most competitive jobs in Hollywood.

For every person who manages to book a reservation at one of the White Lotus hotels, there are dozens who took their shots and came up short for one reason or another. Some auditioned and found the role went to someone else, while others had to step away because of scheduling or personal commitments, but all their stories offer fans the opportunity to imagine how the show might have changed if a different guest had checked in instead.

Country singer Kelsea Ballerini may be a Grammy nominee, but she almost had to go to work as an underpaid and overworked assistant for an eccentric millionaire. That's because Ballerini auditioned for the part of Portia, the frazzled assistant to Jennifer Coolidge's iconic Tanya.

Ballerini told the story to People, saying that she started to pursue acting work because she wanted to "run toward the things that scare you," which took her straight into the audition room with "The White Lotus" creator Mike White. While she worried that she might fall flat as an actress, she didn't let that fear stop her from auditioning. And while she might not have booked the role, Ballerini says she has no regrets about putting herself out there in a new field.

In the interview, she went on to praise Haley Lu Richardson, who played the role of the beleaguered assistant "so brilliantly and beautifully." And while Ballerini may not have made her acting debut on "The White Lotus," her debut TV performance was equally luxurious when she joined the cast of the cruise ship medical drama "Doctor Odyssey" as a bridezilla whose plans to get married aboard the ocean liner are sidetracked by drama and chaos.

Two parts of Season 3 of "The White Lotus" were universally praised: Walton Goggins as the depressed and vengeful Rick, and his reformed hedonist partner-in-crime Frank, played by Sam Rockwell.

It's hard to imagine anyone else in these roles, but at one point or another, none other than Woody Harrelson was meant to play both these parts. Harrelson happened to visit the set while they filmed Season 2, and according to the oral history of Season 3 published by The Hollywood Reporter, he was an early pick to play Rick but had to drop out of the series due to scheduling conflicts, which paved the way for Walton Goggins to take over. 

That wasn't the end of Harrelson's ordeal with Season 3, however, because he was next set to play the cameo role of Frank. 

"Unfortunately, their production schedule shifted, and conflicted with a pre-planned family vacation, forcing me to make an extremely hard decision," Harrelson told THR. "Things must be meant to be though, because I couldn't have done as fantastic a job as Sam."

Luckily, Season 3 star Leslie Bibb was able to help bring her partner Rockwell on board for the part, and the rest is TV history.

Being a working actor is a lesson in humility. You audition over and over again, and sometimes you never hear anything back. Even if you're a globally recognized pop singer, apparently, it's possible to tape an audition for "The White Lotus" and simply never get a response.  

"I did do a self-tape for 'The White Lotus' and obviously did not get it," Lily Allen admitted on her former podcast "Miss Me?" (via HuffPost). "But I think I'm a bit scared of doing self-tapes. Back in the day, I didn't like the idea of casting officers having a tape of me, in case they would share it with other people. Now I don't really subscribe to that fear so much, I don't really care."

According to the source, Allen didn't specify which part she tried out for. Because she's a British woman and roughly the same physical archetype of Aimme Lou Wood, the obvious guess is that Allen went out for the part of Chelsea in Season 3 ... but maybe that's a little too obvious?

One of the central dramas in Season 3 of "The White Lotus" happens among a trio of middle-aged female friends who alternate between enjoying copious cocktails in beautiful Thailand and gossiping about each other behind their backs. "Grey's Anatomy" star Jessica Capshaw revealed on her "Call It What It Is" podcast (via People) that she auditioned for the part of wealthy Texas socialite Kate.

The part ended up going to Leslie Bibb, but Capshaw took this in stride. "We all have a very different take on it," she explained. "So watching Leslie's, I was like, 'Oh my God.' And I was so in, and I thought she was fantastic."

Despite losing out on this part, Capshaw refuses to let it stop her from auditioning for the show. "I'll just keep auditioning. That's what I did for 'Grey's.' I just kept auditioning, it took me three times," Capshaw said. "I'm hoping it'll just take two for Mike White and 'The White Lotus.'"

Most of these almost-casting notices revolve around Season 3, in which competition for the show was as fierce as it has ever been. But Season 2 had its own fair share of missed opportunities.

Take the role of Ethan Spiller, the possibly cuckolded husband of Aubrey Plaza's Harper. Executive producer David Bernad revealed at the 2023 Berlinale Series Market that this role was one of the last in the expansive cast that was filled, and it originally went to "Dahmer" star Evan Peters. That is until, "for whatever reason — scheduling or timing — it didn't work out," Bernad explained (via Deadline).

Peters didn't get to make up for his canceled trip to the White Lotus in Season 3. Instead, he was later seen in "Tron: Ares," and the part went to "Too Much" star Will Sharpe, who dueled with a frenemy played by Theo James throughout the season.