But Rothwell’s already living her manifestations.
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She offers me house slippers so my feet dont get cold.
All thats missing is the ceremonial lei.
Is he annoying you?"
“I can put him in the other room.”
Its one of those seemingly dateless days in the stretch between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
After a crazed schedule all last year, she just wanted to nest.
Its such a personal accomplishment to have a home, she says.
Entertainment was an episode of20/20.
(Yes, of course, she offered me one too.)
The 44-year-olds face is as welcoming as she is.
She has whatever the opposite of resting bitch face isresting doll face, maybe?
Its a face that insists you like her, which is part of her power on screen.
We feel the betrayal immediately.
Rothwell remembers telling White at the time: Ill follow you anywhere.
You know, I just want to work with you again.
He said, Im noodling around this idea about Belinda and spirituality.
Would that interest you?
I was like, Duh of course.
Youre on my vision board.
This is a manifested dinner.
This time around, Belinda comesonthe boat, instead of waving dockside with the service class.
I get to arrive, Rothwell says.
Social climbing, moving on up, all those things.
In part, the season is about her navigating her new position of luxury.
Shes flirting with that line of upstairs-downstairs, Rothwell adds.
Shes never been the recipient of the hospitality she gives.
I was so moved by that.
The only downside to spending five months with an A-list cast in Thailand this time around was the temperature.
I am not a cute and dry person.
Im a sweat-er, Rothwell laughs.
And Thailand was hot as fuck.
She adds: I loved it, but this was, like, a next level kind of heat.
Acting under those conditions is a lot.
I didn’t want to feel like I was just being relegated to the funny sidekick.
The White Lotusisnt the only project thats kept Rothwell busy, but its definitely inspired all the busyness.
She popped up on the big screen over Christmas inSonic the Hedgehog 3.
At one point during the event, her rep leaned over and informed her of the Independent Spirit win.
I was like,I cannot cry in front of Nicole Kidman!”
Rothwell says, though she teared up anyway.
But thats all in here, she says, tapping her head.
Rothwell wasnt one of those kids who knew what she wanted to do from an early age.
Before the age of 14 she had already lived in New Jersey, Florida, Illinois, even Turkey.
She describes herself as precocious when she was young.
The other kids would be outside, and Id be in the kitchen, she says.
Her dad was in the military, her mom worked as a hospital lab tech.
Acting just wasnt on Rothwells radar.
I didn’t want to feel like I was just being relegated to the funny sidekick, Rothwell says.
She struggled until a coffee with her professor set her free.
He was like, you’re free to take comedyseriously, Rothwell recalls.
That unlocked it for me.
I was like, Oh, thecommitmentis what makes that funny.
That’s why Robin Williams was so hilarious.
After that, it didnt feel like a pastime.
Ironically, Rothwells recent roles all seem to be doing the reverse: finding comedy in the serious.
Her characters are all in the midst of re-examining their lives.
Belinda goes to Thailand to reset and find some spark.
I want to live at the intersection of levity and gravity, she says.
I want to be able to make people cry and then piss themselves.
Basically I want something leaking somewhere.
She credits White andThe White Lotuswith really giving her the chance to lean into her dramatic side.
It allowed me to put my theater degree to use.
You know, Im classically trained, she says.
Thats something Im forever grateful to Mike for."
Rothwell has gone through several of her own personal transformations.
Ive been in therapy for 20 years, she tells me.
She has a vision board she keeps in her bedroom decorated in quotes and images that inspire her.
She takes it out to show me, but makes me promise not to reveal the specifics.
First rule of vision boarding?
Your visions are yours and yours alone.
I cant believe Im showing you thisI must like you, Rothwell says.
Her board is framed by glittering crystal.
Quartz, she says.
Sagittarius rising and Aquarius Moon.
Im about to nuzzle your neck or whatever she does!
One of the habits Rothwells learned to kick (mostly): people-pleasing.
She calls herself a people pleaser in recovery.
Rothwell was born in the Midwest, after all.
She tells me how from the ages of 15 to 27, she was a vegetarian.
Was just like mmmm and ate them.
Of course I got a stomachache because I hadnt eaten chicken in 10 years.
Finding body neutrality has been another major part of her journey.
Shes not comparing and despairing now.
Shes really accepting and embracing myself as beautiful.
Growing up, Rothwell was self-conscious about her body.
She went to Weight Watchers; wore an oversized T-shirt over her swimsuit.
Ive had to unlearn the way the world sees plus-sized bodies and plus-sized Black bodies.
Even owning the word fat and not using it pejoratively.
I really had to be really intentional about my words.
I think there’s a lot of power in that.
I ask what she thinks about Ozempic and its rise to prominence.
Half of me is like, Yes, do you.
Your body, your choice.
If you’re happy, great, she says.
The other half almost feels betrayal.
Like, Oh, wait, I was just at the fat girl meeting.
I thought we were all accepting shit!
The health and wellness industrial complex is fed by us not being satisfied with ourselves.
That’s the gasoline that keeps that machine going.
It’s dissatisfaction, self-hate, and wanting to be someone else’s body bang out.
It’s not built to make us at peace with where we are.
In the finale, Melissa strips down to her underwear and runs into a freezing Lake Michigan.
I’m in my bra and panties not even a one piece!
and I jump into a lake on national television, she says.
I put it out there.
People on Twitter [X] responded, Girl, I got your legs!
To me, that was just healing of my little Natasha.
I literally said to her, What celebrity?
Theres a moment of silence.
She just looked at me.
[Then I realized:] Got it.ME.
Still, for what its worth, there have been times shes felt like she had to go incognito.
Sometimes I’ll wear my face mask to Target.
I want to touch people and have my work acknowledged, Rothwell says.
To me, that has always been the focus and the goal.
Luckily, if herThe White Lotusfanbase does explode this season, she can always hide away at home.
The late pope spared no expense when it came to treating the infant prince in 2014.
Skip the shampoos, glosses, and treatments.
The HBO series' biggest season yet filmed in sites ranging from luxury hotels to outdoor clubs.
