Woody Harrelson recently put out a statement explaining why he wasn’t part of the cast of The White Lotus Season 3. It was previously reported that Harrelson wanted to change his salary for the show and eventually left due to scheduling conflicts. The True Detective actor has since clarified the circumstances of his exit.
Woody Harrelson had to leave The White Lotus due to scheduling issues
Harrelson was reportedly in consideration to play either Rick Hatchett or Frank in The White Lotus Season 3. However, Walton Goggins and Sam Rockwell, respectively, would eventually play these roles. In an article published about the show, The Hollywood Reporter cited “two sources” to claim that Harrelson was set to play Rick and even spoke to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav to negotiate his pay. The outlet reported that negotiations didn’t end up happening, and that the actor later departed the show due to conflicts in schedules. Harrelson has since released a statement through his representatives explaining his departure.
“I was set to do White Lotus and very excited. Unfortunately, their production schedule shifted, and conflicted with a pre-planned family vacation, forcing me to make an extremely hard decision,” the statement reads. “Things must be meant to be though, because I couldn’t have done as fantastic a job as Sam, who is killing it.”
Notably, Harrelson’s statement indicates that he was up for Frank and not Rick in The White Lotus Season 3. It remains unclear whether the character Harrelson was going to play was changed or why. However, his reps mentioned that he was set to play Frank when he left the production. “He was set to do the show and they moved the date,” Harrelson’s reps stated. “And because they moved to date, he was no longer available so they recast. That part was the Sam part.”
All eight episodes of The White Lotus Season 3 are currently available on Max. A fourth season of the series has already been announced.
Originally reported by Tamal Kundu on ComingSoon.
