K-pop group BLACKPINK’s Lisa, aka Lalisa Manobal, plays a health mentor called Thidapon ‘Mook’ Sornsin on season 3 of The White Lotus set in Thailand. Talking to The Hollywood Reporter, the show’s creator, Mike White, claimed he did not know who she was and was hesitant to cast her in the role. (Also Read: The White Lotus fans unravel fatal links to previous instalments as season 3 finale nears)
Mike White did not know who Lisa was
In the interview, Lisa told the publication that she had been performing in BLACKPINK for a long time and was looking for a fresh opportunity when she got the chance to audition for The White Lotus. Because she was nervous, she even took acting lessons and brought her mom along with her to Thailand.
Mike stated that he knew of Jennie Kim from The Idol, but he didn’t know who Lisa was and didn’t want to cast her. He said, “I did not know who Lisa or Blackpink was. All I knew was that there was a Blackpink girl in The Idol, and I was like, we’re not doing that. Then I found out that there might be security issues, and I was just like, no. They were like, she’ll audition.”
While the creator admits that her audition was ‘amazing’ and that Lisa is ‘nice and uncomplicated’, “…but I still didn’t want to cast her. I’m just used to not having so much attention; we don’t need it. But I wanted to be respectful to Thailand. She’s like Taylor Swift meets Princess Diana there. She’s more than just a pop star, I just didn’t get it initially. When we cast her, there were people in the production that cried. And anything she does is scrutinized, so it’s a nice part,” he said.
The White Lotus season 3
HBO’s hit series The White Lotus streams on Jio Hotstar in India. New episodes drop weekly, and the show’s final episode will drop on the OTT platform on Monday at 7:35 am. Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Walton Goggins, Sarah Catherine Hook, Jason Isaacs, Michelle Monaghan, Sam Nivola, Lek Patravadi, Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Tayme Thapthimthong, Aimee Lou Wood, Sam Rockwell and Scott Glenn, with Natasha Rothwell also star in it.
