I watched the first season of The White Lotus a bit later than everyone else. I probably caught a marathon and got into it that way. But I was locked and loaded for the second and third seasons, and I’m surprisingly invested in the series at this point. I followed the S4 preproduction casting news with interest, and I was pleased to see that so many French actors were “buying into” the premise, with S4 being set in Paris and the Côte d’Azur. That being said, obviously S4’s cast is mostly American, with some Brits sprinkled in. We heard that Chris Messina, Max Greenfield, Kumail Nanjiani, Steve Coogan, Sandra Bernhard and Vincent Cassel are among the bold-faced names for the new cast.
Well, Helena Bonham Carter was cast a few months ago, and she was apparently on set and filming scenes already when Mike White pulled the plug on her character completely. Helena left the production a few days ago under super-mysterious circumstances, and all we know is that White was committed to recasting and rewriting the role on the fly. Well, White recast the role in a hurry: my nemesis Laura Dern has now been cast. I’m OUT!!
The White Lotus has filled its unexpected vacancy, and series creator Mike White did not look far to do it. Oscar winner Laura Dern, a longtime collaborator and friend of White’s, has joined Season 4 of his HBO series set in France. She replaces Helena Bonham Carter who left late last week.
Dern will play a new character, which is being developed and written for her by White. HBO said at the time of Carter’s exit that after filming had gotten underway on the new season the previous week, “it had become apparent” that the character created by White for Carter “did not align once on set.”
With the role believed to be central to the Season 4 story, a decision was made to rework and recast it, with Dern quickly emerging as a top choice.
This will mark the latest collaboration between Dern and White, who worked together on the 2007 film Year of the Dog, written and directed by White and starring Dern, and the HBO’s 2011-13 series Enlightened, which the two co-created and Dern starred in.
Dern is not a complete stranger to The White Lotus. She did an uncredited voice cameo in Season 2 of the murder mystery as Abby, the estranged wife of Dominic Di Grasso (Michael Imperioli).
And just like that, I’m no longer invested in the series. It would have taken a brilliant casting masterstroke to make me believe that White could salvage this season after he fired (??) Helena mid-production, and this is not a brilliant masterstroke. I mean, this is coming from a certified Dern Hater, but it’s so funny to me that she was available at the last minute like this. Of course she was – all she does is widen her eyes and give the worst, most overwrought line readings known to man. Of course she was jobless and available for this. So, no, not even the presence of Kumail, Messina and Cassel can salvage a show being written around LAURA DERN!!
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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- Vincent Cassel poses at the Photocall for The Shrouds during the 77th Festival de Cannes on Tuesday 21 May 2024 at Le Palais des festivals, Cannes. .,Image: 875147380, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Julie Edwards/Avalon
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- Europe, Italy, Lido di Venezia, August 28, 2025: Laura Dern attends a red carpet for the movie ‘Jay Kelly’ during the 82st Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025, in Venice, Italy.,Image: 1032294131, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: **** World right excluding Italy ****, Model Release: no, Credit line: Ottavia Da Re/Agenzia Sintesi/Avalon
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- 10 January 2026 . Beverly Hills, California – Laura Dern At the 2026 Annual Movies for Grownups Awards with AARP held at Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills.,Image: 1065018934, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: No Sales through Cover Images/Cover Media EVER, Model Release: no, Credit line: Sadou Faye/Avalon
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- Laura Dern attends “Is This Thing On?” UK Gala Screening at Odeon Luxe West End in London, England. UK. Monday 19th January 2026,Image: 1067574132, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NORESTRICTIONS, Model Release: no, Pictured: “Is This Thing On?” – UK Gala Screening, Credit line: James Warren/Bang Showbiz/Avalon
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- Kumail Nanjiani presents the Oscar for Live Action Short Film during the 98th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 15, 2026.,Image: 1083411695, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red/Avalon
Why such hate for Laura Dern??
I was sad to see HBC go, but looking forward to seeing Laura Dern. Love her.
I think she’s just one of those celebrities that Kaiser can’t stand and doesnt think is worth the hype. I’m that way with Emma Stone. (I used to be that way with Jessica Chastain too but she’s growing on me.)
I wouldn’t immediately think of Laura Dern when I her the word “hype” though.
Okay lol, so insert a different word. That was just the first one that popped into my head.
We all have those celebs that just irk us. For me it’s J Law. Lordt. She Is utterly crass & cringe inducing to me.
But as for Laura Dern it seems she is very popular & well liked in Hollywood. I’ve read because she’s fun to work with. She got a coveted role in the new Star Wars movies (pew pew pew guns blazing). Reese Witherspoon/Kidman cast her in Big Little Lies (another coveted role). And now brought in for this because apparently she’s fun to have on set. A more fun/less drama casting equals a more funny season( hopefully!)
I like Laura Dern very much, she’s one of the few nepo babies with actual talent. And she and Mike White have been besties forever – I bet he’d been waiting for the chance to cast her in the White Lotus and this was it
Still waiting on the goss on HBC though! “Character wasn’t working”- Hollywood-speak for she’s too big a name to trash so they came up with a polite solution. White Lotus is too lucrative a show for execs to take any chances (let alone White, because this is his baby)
I love HBC and I’m neutral on Dern, but this switcharoo makes me wonder. “Ugly American” overseas is the show’s vibe. Maybe HBC was coming across too posh, not gauche enough. If that’s the case, I’m sure Dern’s got this. She’s done David Lynch so we know she can white trash a role.
Never forget, Laura Dern was the reason that Citizen Ruth got made. She said yes to the movie first, allowing everyone else to follow.
(Of course, what followed was HW burying the film’s theatrical release, allowing it to gross only about $285,000) barf.
If a filmmaker or star didn’t “play ball,” Weinstein was known to “bury” their movies. Providing zero marketing support and ensuring they failed at the box office, which is exactly what happened to Citizen Ruth.
So sorry on your behalf @kaiser. What a nightmare😂
@kaiser I feel the same when it comes to LD so I completely understand.. I tried to give her a chance with “Big Little Lies” but I’ve never have been able to finish the series because her acting is just irritatingly terrible.
I feel the same way and can never put my finger on my this woman drives me up the wall. I was so mad when she showed up as an important character on “Twin Peaks.”
she was the worst part of BLL
I always get her confused with Daryl Hannah. Oh well, I have faith in Mike White and his kooky vision, let’s see what happens.
Yeah, whatever went down has not been handle well at all. Obviously we don’t know the storyline of season 4 or who the characters are and maybe HBC was not a good fit but why was she cast in the first place? And I agree about bringing Laura Dern onboard so fast. (or at all). The whole thing is just so messy! Maybe Mike White was too busy playing on Survivor and casting himself as a “hero”instead of focusing on White Lotus.
Theory: Maybe HBC reached out and was interested in a role. White thought she was a good fit for the overall dark comedy style. But then she just wasn’t nailing the fine line of rich asshole with moments of relatability. I love love love HBC, but her two go-tos are madly quirky and Uber posh. Trashy rich isn’t on her resume that I can think of.
I like HBC and have followed her for many years. Her Princess Margaret was trashy rich to me. But I do not know the show and the circumstances of her departure.
The royals are trashy AF, no lie. But they’re not White Lotus trashy. Princess Margaret may have drank hard and worked blue, but she wasn’t American nouveau riche at a multinational chain resort tacky. It’s just a different character profile.
I like Dern and I think she will deliver on this role, especially since Mike White is writing the part for her. This isn’t the first time a part has been recast on TWL. I think it was Chloe in S3 that was replaced. Anyway, Kaiser it’s is a win-win for you! Either it will be an epic season that pulls you back in OR you’ll get the last laugh as a Dern hater if this season gets panned!
What the feck has she done to her face???
Heard this news yesterday and immediately thought of you, Kaiser. My deepest condolences
Why is she Kaisers nemesis, in so curious i missed the gist of how this begun!?🥴
It’s just that some actors you maybe irrationally just hate. I was that way with of all people Demi Moore. But not now! Which goes to show you redemption can be had. It was when she was cast in everything and she was constantly being papped with her kids and Bruce Willis. It was her pixie haircut and froggy voice. See what’s mean by irrational? But I really couldn’t stand her!
I have very low expectations for Season 4. I am not a fan of Laura Dern’s acting. It seems crazy to replace HBC with her. Also, I loved the music in the first three seasons and I think the music was a big part of what made the series so great.
I agree it’s the high production values, the dreamy places they go and the multiple story lines so if you don’t care about the people in one you can be invested in another. Laura Dern actually was in S2 as the matriarch of the 3 man Italian American family but just as the voice of the wife who Michaell Imperiolli was trying to woo back.
I can’t stand her..terrible actor in my view, entitled and then the whole thing with the Aniston-Jolie stuff. It’s going to be hard for me to watch WL Series 4. So sad.
Sorry Kaiser, I know you hate her but this is an upgrade. HBC is problematic as hell.
Seriously. Oh no, we’re being deprived of a Rowling-defender whose wander-around-and-pull-faces-whilst-sporting-crazy-hair shtick is no less annoying to me than whatever bugs Kaiser about Laura Dern. However shall we survive.
I’m not mad that HBC is gone, I thought she was weird casting too. I’m just furious that Dern is now in it.
Thank you!! I came here to say – did everyone forget the Johnny Depp and JK Rowling defending HBC did, amongst other things? She’s beautiful, she was a talented actress, but her views are absolute sh*te. She’s in the bin.
Actually….. I can kind of see it. I’m ride or die for the White Lotus, it’s the best thing that’s been on TV in a decade at least, for me, but Dern is hit-or-miss. She’s either amazing (Rambling Rose, Palm Royale) or a total dud (Marriage Story, anything else) …someone said Daryl Hannah and it’s true, she has that little girl lost kind of vibe, which can be affecting for better / worse. BUT!!! I cannot for the life of me understand how you cast a show months ahead of time and only realise after the shooting starts that you’re with the wrong actors. I worked on a network drama when I was just out of uni, in New York, and this would never have happened. If only because the other cast members had some input into the selection of their colleagues. It’s a pretty tight team formation, an ensemble crew, tv shoots are long days, relentless, if you don’t have good juju with the people, it’s awful. I guess HBC was a bit of a pill. Cause if you pull your weight and hit your mark and nail your lines, no one has any energy to start over re-casting your role.
I thought of you, Kaiser! I don’t hate her or anything but she just can’t fill HBC’s shoes for me. That woman is a legend. I’m old enough to remember her as a an edgy ingenue in “A Room With A View” and a free spirit in “Howard’s End.” She has a screen presence Dern can never hope to match.
I will still watch because it’s an ensemble show and not about any one character. I was fine with Jennifer Coolidge not being in S3, because it was never The Tanya Show for me.
Emily Mortimer would have been the perfect choice to replace HBC, and her son was in the last season! Reverse nepotism.
Maybe the problem is HBC is just too big a presence for the show? She was just outshining everyone because she’s That Bitch. I choose to believe that.
Well in recent years the only thing HBC is “legendary” for is going full-throttle support of both JK Rowling (“It’s horrendous, a load of bollocks…I think she has been hounded” and Johnny Depp (“Oh, I think he’s completely vindicated,” she replies. “I think he’s fine now. Totally fine.”)
If anything, her wacky hair and hobo dressing schtick has become such a crutch for her that in my mind she’s basically the female version of her buddy Johnny Depp.
I’m talking about her as an actress with a large body of work going back years. Not about her as a person. When I think of HBC I think of her as Lucy Honeychurch, Helen Schlegel, Princess Margaret, etc. Her social commentary is secondary for me. I don’t look to actors for guidance on stuff like that.
Kaiser, I cackled all the way through reading this! 😀 Thank you, I needed a good laugh today. Hope you’ve recovered from the shock of this casting now.
True confession: I’ve never seen White Lotus, or anything with Helena Bonham Carter or Laura Dern in it, as I tend to watch classic movies. (Sorry, I don’t know if White Lotus is a movie or what?). I just came to see if @Kaiser would say “My nemesis Laura Dern” which, as far as I’m concerned, she should change her name to, because it’s funny as hell for some random reason.
@debbie both actresses have amazing “classic movie” cred (depending on your definition). HBC in a Lady Jane, A room with a view, Howard’s end and Dern with so much David Lynch
@Normades – IKR? Those movies came out when I was a teen, and I think of “classic” as the 1940s film noir era, but dayum if HBR and Dern haven’t both done work in industry defining films that, well, the grandparents of today’s teens were watching in their day.
I like Laura Dern. She takes chances. Her indie movie The Tale is one I have never stopped thinking about — written and directed by a woman and psychologically complex. Also, Enlightened, one of her early collaborations with Mike White, is so good! At first you think it’s going one way and then the gears shift and the series zags in another direction. She’s very good in it.
Wasn’t Dern the ex-wife of one of the characters when they were in Italy… she was only on the phone I think but i am sure it was her. So now she is somebody brand new?
That makes me wonder…
That would be interesting if he rewrote it to tie that in
Oh. Dayum. You NAILED it. There was a through line with Greg (bizarrely) but that’s done. Yaaay bring back the Portia/Albie plot line!!
I COULD NOT WAIT to read Kaiser’s take on this recasting news, and this post did not disappoint! I don’t particularly like Laura Dern (I think she’s overrated) but I don’t hate her either. At least she’s not problematic like the Rowling-loving, Depp-defending Helena Bonham Carter. And I have to admit that Laura Dern was excellent in “Enlightened,” which was also helmed by Mike White. So I’m cautiously, tentatively semi-optimistic here.
I’m glad that HBC got replaced. She’s gone full ham in the last several years and projects. She’s gone full Johnny Depp in her performances and I find her distracting for that reason. She’s also a fan of JK Rowling and her anti-trans nonsense. Good riddance.
I feel the same. I suspect HBC behaved awfully for this to happen. I’ve heard nothing about Laura Dern being an anti-trans bigot or defending Johnny Depp, so this is a win to me. I’d love to see gossip sites, including Celebitchy, tread more carefully and articulately when dunking on women. I’m not understanding the vitriol against Laura Dern. Even if you consider her to be a terrible actress, with so much misogyny in the world, I would love to see that expressed in a more even-keeled way.
I hate that “laughing while crying” shtick that LD employs too often. I do not find her acting at all convincing.
I’m not mad about this recasting. I like Dern’s work over the years. Something about Bonham Carters acting bugs me. Either her face is always obscured by her hair or she sounds like she’s muttering. Something about her voice. Anyway, will definitely be watching season 4. Wasn’t crazy about Season 3 and that absurd ending but I watched it.
I wonder given HBC recent problematic takes if there was something that she objected to. But the fact that he wrote the role specifically for her is just weird that it didn’t work out. It could be also that he thought she was too old because last season he recasted someone he thought was too young. I would love to know the story behind this and will definitely watch as I think this new season after 1.money/class 2. Sex 3. Fake spiritualisme will now be about fame. Maybe HBC was giving too much quirky rich lady vibes and he wanted more rich bitch famous vibes (which I could see Laura Dern doing)
Dern is wonderful and she’s worked with Mike White before on an incredible TV series. So yay!
Is Laura Dern is going to do her over the top loud, histrionic, abrasive, annoying rich woman shtick again? A woman who throws fits, like Big Little Lies and Marriage Story. Her acting is like bad wallpaper to me, I just want to move on from any scenes she’s in.
She wasn’t just available, I bet she was cheap too.
I’m actually quite pleased with LD casting. You need to see her in her breakout film Smooth Talk. Also she was the star of one of Mike Whites early series called Enlightenment. Both the show and her were amazing. I have a feeling that HBC did not get along with MW and that’s why she’s gone. I’m excited for LD!
Truthiness, wow, I think Laura Dern is a terrific actress. How opinions do vary, just like recollections.
Dunno, maybe I just saw her playing obnoxious women? I liked Blue Velvet but she was nondescript in that one. I always want to see more of actresses like Viola Davis or Tilda Swinton throwing fits or having middle aged meltdowns. Tilda’s meltdown in Michael Clayton was perfection. Maybe Laura Dern will prove me wrong!
I thought LD was pretty good in BLL. Now if the recasting was Dakota Johnson, I’d peace out…I just can’t. I was secretly hoping for Joan Cusak in a WL role.
Lynz, yes, I loved her in Enlightenment and that’s her Mike White series. So good!
Of course she was jobless and available for this sent me 😂
I was disappointed when they made the announcement that she was re-cast or cast for a new role. I don’t hate her like Kaiser. But she is on my actors that irk me list. Which includes, Laura Dern, Owen Wilson and George Clooney. Special shout out to George for helping destroy the country safe behind his Italian villa walls.
I was hoping Parker Posey would come back as a humbled, divorced hotel worker with her ex in prison. But can’t accept her circumstances still acting like the elite.
But alas not to be.