EXCLUSIVE: Steve Coogan has revealed that Mike White‘s taste for cult British indie films was the reason he joined the cast of The White Lotus Season 4.
Speaking to Deadline on the BAFTA TV Awards red carpet, the actor said he was back and forth from the south of France, where the HBO series is currently filming.
Coogan said he had been fascinated by White’s work since Chuck & Buck in 2000, and he had watched all three seasons of The White Lotus. “I always thought I’d love to work with him,” he said.
The feeling was mutual, it would seem. Coogan, who was BAFTA-nominated for his performance in BBC comedy How Are You? It’s Alan (Partridge), said White was a fan of Michael Winterbottom’s 24 Hour Party People, the 2002 British film about the Manchester music scene. White also enjoyed Coffee and Cigarettes.
“I think I’ve slotted right in,” Coogan said of his time filming The White Lotus. “I’m really enjoying it. He’s quite collaborative. He lets you embellish and improvise, and I’m in my comfort zone.”
Deadline also asked Coogan about the surprise exit of Helena Bonham Carter, who left The White Lotus around a week into production and was later replaced by Laura Dern.
“It just went in a different direction,” he said. “It was like, sometimes you find that something isn’t working the way you want it to, in terms of, like, the character and the dynamic of the whole story. So that was just a mutual decision … The whole part was rewritten from scratch.”
When Deadline broke the news, an HBO spokesperson said White and Bonham Carter “did not align once on set.” They added: “The role has subsequently been rethought, is being rewritten and will be recast in the coming weeks. HBO, the producers and Mike White are saddened that they won’t get to work with her, but remain ardent fans and very much hope to work with the legendary actress on another project soon.”
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