Featured Image Credit: HBO Max
Topics: The White Lotus, Donald Trump, Politics, TV And Film
Mia Williams
Topics: The White Lotus, Donald Trump, Politics, TV And Film
A star from The White Lotus has revealed that writers took out a non-binary character following Donald Trump's election win, after suggesting the topic was 'so big'.
Actress Carrie Coon - who plays Laurie, one of the three women who are holidaying together despite being in a toxic friendship in the show - revealed that her character's child was momentarily a non-binary character, but this element was removed from the show following Trump's win in November last year.
It was firstly set to be part of a wider conversation, in which Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan) and Laurie are shocked after Kate (Leslie Bibb) hints that she may have voted for Trump during a heated political discussion.
Advert
Coon later revealed that the creator of The White Lotus, Mike White, decided that the conversation was too big to tackle in such a small part of the drama.
The 44-year-old explained that it 'wasn’t the right way to engage in that conversation' following Trump's election win, and his very vocal and derogatory views of transgender and non-binary people.
Speaking to Harper's Bazaar, the actress said: "You originally found out that her daughter was actually non-binary, maybe trans, and going by they/them.
"You see Laurie struggling to explain it to her friends, struggling to use they/them pronouns, struggling with the language, which was all interesting."
Coon added: "It was only a short scene, but for me, it did make the question of whether Kate voted for Trump so much more provocative and personally offensive to Laurie, considering who her child is in the world."
She also explained further why they didn't feel it was the right time to confront the topic, noting that the episode was 'written before the election'.
The star said: "Considering the way the Trump administration has weaponised the cultural war against transgender people even more since then, when the time came to cut the episode down, Mike felt that the scene was so small and the topic so big that it wasn’t the right way to engage in that conversation."
Just moments after being sworn into office on 20 January, Trump issued a number of executive orders, including one that stated the US only recognises two genders - male and female.
The president said: "These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.
"As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female. 'Sex' is not a synonym for and does not include the concept of 'gender identity'."
Trump also famously de-funded DEI (diversity, equality, and inclusion) programs in the early weeks of his second term.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 10am–6pm Monday to Friday, or email [email protected]