With filming on the near horizon, The White Lotus is beginning to ramp up the reveal of its next grand ensemble cast for its non-tropical season 4 in France.
Previously, actors Vikings’ Alexander Ludwig and The Goldbergs’ AJ Michalka were announced as the first two cast members. Now, HBO has announced that Steve Coogan and Caleb Jonte Edwards will be added as the next two members of season 4.
Of the four, Steve Coogan is the best-known, especially as a two-time Oscar nominee. The veteran actor is best known for his role as Alan Partridge, a parody of British TV personalities, with his influence is felt across countless comedies over the years. But in terms of a widely-reaching TV show, this would be his most prominent role in ages.
ROME, ITALY – OCTOBER 24: Steve Coogan walks the red carpet ahead of the “Stan & Ollie” screening during the 13th Rome Film Fest at Auditorium Parco Della Musica on October 24, 2018 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Maria Moratti/Contigo/Getty Images)
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Caleb Jonte Edwards, meanwhile, is effectively a total unknown. He was in a single episode of Black Snow, a 2021 detective series. An interesting Vikings connection is that the show was led by Ragnar Lothbrok himself, Travis Fimmel, whose character was the father of Alexander Ludwig’s character in that show. My guess is that this is just a coincidence. But this does appear to be Edwards’ second mainstream acting role ever. What an opportunity.
There is a fifth cast member who is rumored, but not cast yet, though reporting on this show usually does pan out. That would be Chris Messina of Based on a True Story, Sharp Objects and The Mindy Project. You may not know his name, but I bet you’d recognize him:
Chris Messina in Sharp Objects
HBO
What is not included in this reporting is who any of these actors are playing, whether in the same family or otherwise. The White Lotus is usually broken up into 5 or 6 “groups” of characters. So far, these four would indicate fewer “names” than usual, perhaps outside of Coogan, as season 3 alone had the likes of Jason Isaacs, Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Michelle Monaghan, the omnipresent Walton Goggins and even global Kpop superstar LISA. This isn’t meant to insult any of the cast so far; it’s just a bit different. Of course, there are still probably a dozen major roles yet to be announced, and some of the best White Lotus performances have been given by actors that viewers were not familiar with before.
Current estimates put The White Lotus season 4 potentially not premiering until May 2027, more than two years since the last season, and around the same as the gap between seasons 2 and 3. Production on season 4 is supposed to begin next month in February.
Despite a lot of nominations, The White Lotus season 3 was nearly shut out at the Emmys this past year, winning only one award for its main title music. I would argue that yes, the season was lacking compared to past ones, but we’ll see what happens in season 4.
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