‘The White Lotus’ Water Gun Scene Was a “Nightmare” for Leslie Bibb
The third season of Mike White’s hit anthology drama The White Lotus has had a bunch of pretty intense moments, but only one of those almost gave Leslie Bibb a real-life panic — here’s why.
Some fans of Mike White’s The White Lotus might not be over the latest season’s heartbreaking finale a month after its release, but the show’s cast members likely have other scenes to still freak out about.
This time following a new set of characters to a luxurious resort in Thailand, The White Lotus’ season 3 also delved into the complicated friendship between Kate, Laurie and Jaclyn, portrayed by Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon and Michelle Monaghan respectively.
Leslie Bibb Recalls Fear of “Getting Diarrhea” While Shooting ‘The White Lotus’ Water Gun Scene
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The third season’s finale might have been a pretty big shocker, but the scene where Kate, Laurie and Jaclyn are trying to escape from a bunch of children celebrating Thai New Year with water guns was likely meant to be some sort of preparation for the level of panic at the end.
Coincidentally, the celebration took place just around the time of The White Lotus’ shooting, so Leslie Bibb was the first to consider it a good way to rehearse the scene and have some fun at the same time.
Soon, however, things went completely wrong.
“When we were there, [the festival] actually happened in real time and everyone’s like, 'Let's go!’. And I was like, 'No, I want to experience' — I was Daniel Day Lewis–ing it — I was like, 'I'm gonna experience it for real between action and cut. We got there and it was like 300 extras, all with water guns, and it was a nightmare”, the actress revealed during a talk on Late Night With Seth Mayers.
Apart from just getting more and more soaked with water, Bibb then realised there might be something even scarier than just getting all wet.
“I was like, 'Where is this water coming [from]? Because it's not the cleanest water in Thailand. Is that bottled?' They're like, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,’. And I was like, 'Oh, we're all getting diarrhea. We're all getting diarrhea. This is all going nowhere”, Bibb said later.
Leslie Bibb Says Sam Rockwell “Chewed Up That Character” in ‘The White Lotus’ Shocking Cameo Role
As it later turned out, The White Lotus’ season 3 was not only an unforgettable experience, but also a family affair for Bibb who had her real-life partner and Oscar winner Sam Rockwell on set.
The actor’s surprising appearance in the season’s several episodes resulted in one of the best scenes in the entire series, with Rockwell’s shocking monologue becoming the most iconic piece of scriptwriting Mike White has ever shared on the screen.
“We were there for six months, Sam was there for eight days — Sam did not have the same experience in eight days. He got The White Lotus light. But it's nice to be able to have a context to share, and I think he's a great actor, and we're lucky to have him, and I think he chewed up that character. Mike was really happy to have him too”, Bibb revealed during the conversation.
