Upon learning they'd landed roles in The White Lotus' hotly-anticipated third season in 2023, Michelle Monaghan, Leslie Bibb and Carrie Coon made a group chat with each other. 'We started to talk about our own backstories and shared personal photos of us as teenagers and young girls and things like that. Then we all landed in Thailand, and kicked off production,' Monaghan tells ELLE UK over the phone from New York, where she's commenced filming on her next project.
The rest, of course, is history. Jaclyn, Monaghan's character in the social satire, forms one-third of what fans of the hit HBO social satire have christened 'The Toxic Trio', a group of childhood blonde friends on a girls trip to Thailand, during which time they launder their frustrations with each other through thinly-veiled compliments, as their perfectly white eyes and teeth glimmer menacingly. After landing in Thailand, their first day of filming was when they filmed snippets of the eighth — and finale — episode, including the moment Jaclyn comes to Laurie's (Carrie Coon) room to apologise.
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Monaghan had met Bibb once, a decade before filming commenced, and while she was familiar with Coon's work, had never met her. By the end of their six month-stint spent filming in and around Thailand, the three were firm friends. So much so, in fact, that when they filmed what would become their seminal final scene three months into filming — during which Laurie delivers a heart-wrenchingly raw monologue about life and friendship — there wasn't a dry eye in the house. 'Everybody on-set was really emotional, even Mike, because it was just such a raw and authentic moment that was genuinely really special,' she adds.
Upon receiving the script for The White Lotus, Monaghan and her co-stars read it in its entirety, during which time she realised that Aimee Lou Wood's Chelsea and Walton Goggins' Rick were set to die. 'It was a shock because you never know and it's an incredible, very intense, read that takes about eight hours and you think that you have it figured out, and you don't. It was absolutely tragic and beautifully satisfying, the way he [Mike White] wrapped the whole series up, it was fantastic,' she posits.
Monaghan's husband and her two children joined her in Thailand for three out of the six months that they were filming in Thailand. Despite her family's omnipresence while filming — and the litany of NDAs she naturally signed — Monaghan kept the secret of who died in the third season closely guarded. 'My husband and family were in Thailand while we were shooting it and he didn't even know, he was just as shocked as everybody else,' she notes, adding that the couple are no strangers to surprises, having opted not to find out the gender of either of their children. 'We like surprises!'
That's not to say that the stars of the third series were given any special viewing treatment of the final episode, though — they watched it in real time with the rest of the world on Sunday evening. In keeping with the arc of her character Jaclyn, for Monaghan her viewing party consisted of a girls night in New York City with her long-time agent and friend. 'We ordered some food and had some wine and the finale was just jaw-dropping. It was incredible,' she says, adding that one of the first things she did was text her co-stars who, despite having lived in close proximity to them for months, she hadn't seen act due to their characters not having scenes with one another. 'I texted Nicholas [Duvernay, who plays Zion] right away about that scene that he had with Belinda [Natasha Rothwell] and Greg [Jon Gries], and I was like, "buddy, you owned that scene."'
Despite her 25-year career, the response from audiences that she's had pertaining to her role in The White Lotus has superseded any fan reaction she's had before. 'I'm still riding that wonderful White Lotus wave that started over a year ago,' she says gushingly. 'To be able to watch this in real time with the rest of the world has been exhilarating. I've been a part of this industry for so long, but I have never experienced this kind of immersive and interactive experience with the way people consume the show, the way people are so besotted by it. It's been amazing.'
Rumours have abounded since the season finale aired as to where The White Lotus' fourth season might spring up, with many proffering the idea of an alpine setting. 'I've always thought that Africa would be a really amazing place for the show,' Monaghan jokes. 'But Mike White absolutely hates the cold so I don't think we'll see them in any kind of cold climate any time soon.'
Would she consider reprising her role as Jaclyn in future series? 'Of course! I'd go to a cold climate, a hot climate,' she says. 'I'd go to the moon and back again for Mike White.'
The White Lotus season three is available to stream now on HBO.
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Naomi May is a seasoned culture journalist and editor with over ten years’ worth of experience in shaping stories and building digital communities. After graduating with a First Class Honours from City University's prestigious Journalism course, Naomi joined the Evening Standard, where she worked across both the newspaper and website. She is now the Digital Editor at ELLE Magazine and has written features for the likes of The Guardian, Vogue, Vice and Refinery29, among many others. Naomi is also the host of the ELLE Collective book club.
