As the third season of the hit HBO anthology show The White Lotus comes to a sure-to-be dramatic end, the events in Mike White’s sun-soaked, morally tangled universe have moved to Thailand. Among the resort guest is Kate Bohr, played by Leslie Bibb, who takes a seemingly innocent girls’ trip abroad to reconnect with her childhood best friends, before true colours are revealed. With such an immersive storyline, it was an experience for Bibb that defied all her expectations — she tells us all about it in the latest BTB Digital story!

Full look **Marc Jacobs**, necklace **Boucheron**

How did acting come about, did it find you while you were modelling, or did you find it?

I suppose I found acting because of a commercial I booked for Lee Jeans. The whole commercial was improvised, and the concept was “Lee Jeans will make you look like a model but not think like one.” Oh god, that is so mean. Jesus, but anyway, that was the concept. I was a model, living in NYC, as I had taken a year’s sabbatical from UVA, the university I had just started, and I got the commercial 5 months into my year off.

After it aired, I started getting calls for auditions for movies and television, and I had also started to hang out with young actors in New York and I suddenly felt like “Oh, this is where I belong!” I knew I wanted to explore acting and knew I had some natural ability, but wanted to study and have a foundation, a craft. So, I applied and got into William Esper’s 2-year programme. I studied with Maggie Flanigan, and it changed my life, so, thanks Lee Jeans!

Oprah helped to launch your modelling career too.

Well, I won a modelling contest on the Oprah Winfrey show, and it blew the doors off my life and opened my eyes to a whole new world of art, theatre, food, and possibility — NYC has that effect. I was only a model for a few years. I liken it to my bartending or waitressing job to pay for acting school. It was wonderful in that sense and gave me a great work ethic. It taught me how to be responsible and professional so that when I was making my living as a full-time actor, which I was so very fortunate to have happened very quickly, I knew how to show up on a set, on time and ready.

You say it blew the doors off your life. Did it all change overnight?

No, my life didn’t change overnight exactly, but it changed the trajectory of my life. The scope of my life expanded exponentially I believe the moment I went to NYC. I will never forget the taxi ride from LaGuardia into Manhattan and coming across the bridge and driving down Houston St and seeing the buildings and I remember thinking; my life will be forever changed. I just knew what I thought was possible for my future was going to be different and to fasten my seatbelt. So, not overnight, but profoundly changed long term.

Left Full look **Christian Dior**
Right Full look **Acne Studios**

So, from commercials and magazine covers to film and TV, most notably now The White Lotus – it’s one of the most revered shows. What was your first thought when you found out you got this role?

My real debut in Popular (the teen comedy-drama series), was a big deal for me as an actor, and Talladega Nights, Iron Man and Palm Royale were all important stepping-stones to The White Lotus. I feel like they were major avenues of expansion for me, but, honestly, every job makes you grow artistically. My first thought when I got The White Lotus … I was in Savannah shooting a Clint Eastwood movie, and I was in bed in my hotel room (I think I had worked late because I was still in bed, as I’m usually an early riser), and my agents called, and I screamed. I threw the covers over my head and screamed with joy!

You play Kate, on a girlie holiday to reconnect with old childhood friends. Did Mike White give you a character description right off, or did he let you figure out who your character is?

Mike and I had a Zoom where we talked about Kate. We talked about her perfectionism. We talked about a lot of things, but I really remember that part of the conversation, and it ignited something in me as I began to build Kate. I think that was the cornerstone of creating her for me. It’s a process and it’s a never-ending journey. You never know everything. It’s a constant exploration. You’ve got to stay curious and seeking when crafting a character.

Full look **Balenciaga**, Necklace **Boucheron**

Were you able to read the script before joining?

Once you get cast and you sign on, you get to read all the episodes for the season, which is a guarded 8 episodes. You join the cast before you read all 8. Those scripts are protected, and no one can just access them, so you sign onto the season without that full knowledge of your character’s arc. But it’s a no-brainer with this show and with Mike White, because he does extraordinary things with this show, so I knew I wanted to be a part of it in any capacity. When I read all 8 episodes, I remember thinking, “Wow, this season is swinging for the fences in a bigger, deeper way than past seasons.” Mike is a fucking genius. I hate it when people use that word because I think it’s overly used, but he really is. It’s an appropriate use of the word when it comes to him. I loved the story of these three women and their friendship.

Yes, the girls' trip is such an interesting storyline, with their evolving dynamics, and that interplay of how they’ve all been conditioned to compare themselves to each other and judge themselves. It’s a story played out amongst women every day in real life, and one we’re all trying to change.

The storyline of the women feels universal. This competition, this comparative nature of “my life vs your life”. I feel like both men and women can understand the pressure of keeping up. I wonder what would have happened if all three of these women had just come in and been honest about where they were in their lives. If they risked being vulnerable about their feelings, views, or just what is happening in their lives at that moment. I think it’s part of the human condition, to compare. Especially in this world of Instagram and Facebook and this “look at my glossy life”, this filtered life. We aren’t seeing the edges, the cracks. Mike White loves those edges and fissures and leans into those and blows them up.

Full look Celine by **Hedi Slimane**, shoes **Maison Margiela**

Did you take anything away from being part of the storyline, did anything resonate with you personally?

I think this storyline has stayed with me and reminded me that it’s okay to feel like maybe I don’t have it all under control. It’s quite freeing to admit when I am feeling overwhelmed or insecure and lean into my friends. And, anyway, do we ever have anything “under control?” It feels like a false sense of security. Like a little lie we tell ourselves as a protection to the truth that maybe it can’t all fit neatly into this box and in fact, we are all just doing our best, day by day. I think that is part of Kate’s perfectionism. It’s about control, which makes her feel important and gives her a deeper sense of worth.

How did you and your co-stars lean into each other, in how you play these women, finding their dynamic?

Michelle and Carrie and I began a text thread as soon as we all signed on and sent childhood photos of ourselves and, so we were all on the same page. We decided when we met, what age, where we were from, but, honestly, we were shot out of a canon. Our villa scenes were the first to be shot, and we were doing all those scenes for all 8 episodes the very first week of shooting. We met, as a trio, four days before we started filming. I don’t know why we had chemistry, and it worked, but it did. I go back to Mike White and his ability to cast so well. I also think all three of us have a similar work ethic and are hard workers. We all just trusted that we would show up for one another, and we did.

Full look **Maison Margiela**, bracelet & ring **Boucheron**

Was it difficult stepping into something that’s in its third season, that you haven’t been a part of, but you know that the audience is hungry for? Did you feel that pressure because you know everyone is going to watch it?

Yes, I think we all felt that pressure. There is a love of this show I have never quite experienced before, so you don’t want to drop the ball. However, that pressure isn’t conducive to good work. You are thinking about results, and you can’t do that with acting. It takes you out of the moment. I guess that’s why I said “we were shot out of a canon” because we shot those villa scenes first and were the first in Thailand. But I also feel like it allowed me time to shake out any expectations for the first two seasons. It was out of my control, just do the work, be relaxed and give Kate the grace she deserves to live her truth, and the rest will be what it will be. It was freeing. I think, though, I always feel pressure to make sure the work is good, that I have done enough, explored or mined deep enough for the characters I play. I really love what I do, and I fall in love with my characters, so I get obsessive about the work.

You’re working across the world and staying in a hotel that you’re also filming the show in. What was that experience like, all of you being together, with no distance between your personal life and your work life?

Art imitating life. You start to feel like you are literally in The White Lotus. It’s a singular experience and one I may never have again. It’s odd at first and then kind of amazing and sometimes claustrophobic and then fucking amazing. It’s like adult camp and I do think it helps the work, in a way. You are living the experience you’re portraying on screen, in a way. What looks like 6 days at a resort was 6 months for us. I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Left Full look **Balenciaga**, Necklace **Boucheron**
Right Full look **Christian Dior**

Did you have time to experience life outside of The White Lotus. What ended up being your favourite spot in Thailand?

I had been to Thailand before, so I knew how amazing the people were, and had explored a lot of the temples in a previous trip. But this go-a-round, I think the experience I had at an elephant sanctuary, which is truly an elephant rescue, was my favourite. I went twice. Also, I had this incredible boat trip with my girlfriend who came to visit. It was just bananas fun and an experience we will both never forget—and I also took her to the elephant sanctuary.

I’m so in awe of those rescue sanctuaries, and how elephants are considered sacred animals in Thailand, spiritually symbolic in Buddhism. Speaking of which, the theme of spirituality and karmic consequences features in this third season quite heavily. Are you a spiritual person?

I think I am a spiritual person. I know that I am in constant pursuit of looking inwardly, to be a better person, to let go of past trauma, of past narratives I have for myself, to expand versus retract, and to stay curious. Some days I really am good at that path and others I fail miserably and let my ego win, or doubt drive the bus, but I always find my way back to the path of growth and the search of whatever “personal enlightenment” means for me. I guess it also changes, too, that definition or what that looks like. I just want to stay in flow versus getting stagnate. Stagnation scares me. It feels fearful and I don’t mind being frightened of things, but I don’t want it to stop me from moving forward. Fear can lead to some awesome growth.