Mike White is preoccupied with questions of wealth and class, cbattan writes. His show “The White Lotus” is about “the catastrophic things that can happen when the super-privileged collide with the people who’ve been sent to serve them.”
Last summer, the screenwriter, director, and actor Mike White took a road trip around the American West with his dog. He was in a depressive quarantine funk, driving aimlessly, when he received an e-mail from HBO. Because of, the network had a content void it needed to fill, and execs were reaching out to writers like White for ideas.
There was a practical backstory to it, which is that HBO did not have content because so many shows shut down because of. I think they came to me because they know I’m kind of a fast writer. I’ve tried to get stuff going at HBO ever since “Enlightened.” It wasn’t like I just left TV. I did a pilot for them that I thought turned out really well. I wrote a script, with Jennifer Coolidge starring, that they did not want to do. They couldn’t have passed faster on it.
At any point in your Hawaii journey did you identify with the rich tourists you were portraying in the show? I think of that show “Succession.” It’s a great show, but it’s very king’s court. You can kind of otherize them. They’re billionaires. With “White Lotus,” I wanted it to be more, like, this is your next-door-neighbor rich person who is part of the system.
You have a knack for casting interesting or unexpected actors in your projects. How did you approach this one? There was a narrative around “Enlightened” being cancelled. You became a poster boy for real artistry getting burned by Hollywood, or by the viewers having bad taste, or something. Was that a misrepresentation, or did you identify with that narrative?
The television landscape has obviously evolved tremendously since you made “Enlightened.” How has the streaming ecosystem changed the way you make or pitch shows? No. I think it’s hard. Things have been brought to me because people know about my dad and my childhood and that I grew up around that whole world. But I have such a bad taste in my mouth about all of that that I don’t think I could do a humanist, dimensional approach to it. It would be difficult for me to approach it in a way that wasn’t full of bile.You’ve gone on “The Amazing Race” twice, and you were on “Survivor” in 2018. The season had a David-vs.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
'White Lotus' Writer Mike White is the First Former 'Survivor' Contestant to Win an EmmyMike White has become the first 'Survivor' contestant to win an Emmy not based on a live show or talk show.
Read more »
It’s Gonna Be a Hot Mike White Summer, Thanks to “The White Lotus”The oddball auteur’s characters “all have their failings,” says White. “But I identify with them all in different ways because…it’s coming from me! Am I that bad?”
Read more »
Future-Facing CommoditiesFuture Facing Commodities will be the focus of mining companies as they follow the lead of BHP ands leave coal behind.
Read more »
Juror excused in R. Kelly trial after suffering panic attackThe dismissed juror was replaced by an alternate, a white male who appears to be in his 60s, according to the Tribune.
Read more »