In the first season of The White Lotus, Alexandra Daddario played Rachel Patton, a character who had a crucial bikini scene. What was the actor’s reaction to it?
OVERVIEW
Instead of being exploitative, Alexandra Daddario’s bikini scene in “The White Lotus” highlights the autonomy and self-assurance of her character.
Daddario’s career has been rejuvenated by her role in the series, and she will now play the lead in the next “Mayfair Witches” series.
In addition to elevating Daddario’s career to new heights, “The White Lotus” has earned her an Emmy nomination.
In the first season of The White Lotus, Alexandra Daddario portrays one of the most memorable characters; her swimsuit scene stood out in particular. Daddario’s breakthrough performance came in the Percy Jackson films as Annabeth Chase, but her first acting credit was Laurie Lewis in the serial opera All My Children. From then on, the actress’s sexuality seemed to characterize many of her parts, including those in Hall Pass and True Detective. Daddario even afraid that her career might end because of her role in Baywatch. But then there was The White Lotus.
The White Lotus is an anthology series that Mike White created and aired on HBO in 2021. Daddario is a cast member in White Lotus season 1, which is set in several locations of the namesake luxury hotel group. Daddario portrays Rachel Patton, a journalist who is enjoying her honeymoon with Jake Lacy’s character, Shane. Despite Shane’s wealth and good looks, Rachel quickly learns that the man she married is resentful, vindictive, and only sees her as a trophy. Although she is able to find some strength in a crucial bikini scene, Rachel still feels as though she is imprisoned in a golden cage. However, what was Daddario’s opinion on it?
Alexandra Daddario believes the bikini scene of her White Lotus character was a powerful move.
Two petty college girls who make fun of everyone they can, Olivia (Sydney Sweeney) and Paula (Brittany O’Grady), are also guests at the White Lotus in Hawaii. They smell fresh meat when Rachel timidly strikes up a conversation. They then go on to make fun of Rachel’s lack of privilege and education, even going so far as to suggest that she is a trophy wife, which is something Rachel obviously fears. However, when Rachel takes off her preppy attire to show a cute white bikini and strolls into the water, she silences her tormentors.
This White Lotus scene may have been seen as Rachel confirming Olivia and Rachel’s argument that she’s only valuable for her appearance, which would have been clumsy and exploitative. However, Daddario doesn’t play the scene that way. Rachel’s agency is demonstrated by her effortless, self-assured confidence when she undresses and takes a swim. She is aware of her sexual aptitude but doesn’t rely on it; instead, she is fully in charge of it and can utilize it whenever she wants. The scene demonstrates Rachel’s complexity in a subtle way. Daddario discussed it in a Men’s Journal interview:
At the end, Rachel strips off and flaunts her body in a type of retaliatory move that makes for a hilarious power struggle. At the end of the day, this need to prevail unites us all. “I can see I’m being judged,” or “I can see I’m losing this conversation, so what’s my trump card?” And Rachel feels that way as well.”
Daddario attributes her career’s rebirth to The White Lotus.
From Daddario’s True Detective naked scene to Baywatch, the White Lotus actress has always been franking about the sexuality of her characters. Although these roles helped her career, she eventually encountered a slump. Daddario, who starred in forgotten rom-coms and critically panned independent films like Love Hotels and Lost Girls, told Women’s Health:
“I knew the work I was supposed to be doing in the years before the pandemic, but it wasn’t happening, so I was like, ‘Where am I going?'”
However, Daddario was cast for The White Lotus during the height of the COVID-19 outbreak; the only “drawback” was that she was unable to leave the Four Seasons hotel where the movie was being filmed. For Daddario, things took a turn for the better after that. She received the part she deserved as Rachel Patton and received her first Emmy nomination. Daddario went from being a supporting actor in White Lotus to a lead in Mayfair Witches, the popular AMC series starring Anne Rice, as Rowan Fielding. Daddario’s star will continue to rise with the release of Mayfair Witches’ second season.
