In just a few short years, The White Lotus has become one of the HBO's most popular shows on the air. Mike White's dark comedy (which is streaming with a Max subscription) is currently in the midst of Season 3, and there's been a ton of discourse surrounding actor Jason Isaacs. In addition to Isaacs' viral nude scene, people online have also been discussing the accent used by him and Parker Posey. And he's even responded to that chatter.
While it was revealed that Isaacs wore a prosthetic penis, the conversations surrounding his accent have continued to follow the season. As some folks figure out how to watch The White Lotus Season 3, the OA alum offended his dialect for Timothy Ratliff during an interview with Esquire. He said:
It’s Durham. It’s not just North Carolina. It’s very specific. The Internet exploded with people going, ‘This is the worst accent I’ve ever heard in my life.’ But then there’s also people from Durham commenting, Spot-on. Or, What are you talking about? He sounds exactly like my dad, or my dentist, or my swim coach, or whomever. So I feel slightly validated, although I can’t pretend that those thousand little barbs don’t hurt. I want to write back to each of them individually, and go, ‘Listen to this sample, then compare it to my voice.’ But it’s not really my job, and I shouldn’t be reading their comments.
So there. Isaacs has clearly seen the discourse surrounding his performance in The White Lotus, and is standing by the accent he did throughout Season 3. And while it might have been shocking for some audiences, he and Parker Posey are using a very specific dialect as the Durham-based Ratliff family.
Isaacs has had a long and wildly successful career in film, including being part of the Harry Potter cast. As such, it was ballsy for fans to throw jabs at both him and Parker Posey for their accent work in The White Lotus Season 3. Maybe we should let the professionals do what they do best.
Personally, I've been loving this accent used by Isaacs and Posey, with the latter actress using it to really chew the scenery in every single scene. Footage of the Best In Show actress went viral immediately, and her lines from Season 3 and press appearances have even been made into a dance track. Yes, I do walk around my home talking imitating her saying "Buddhism", "Tsunami" and more of her already iconic one-liners.
It should be interesting to see what happens to the Ratliff family, whose tension is reaching a boiling point on The White Lotus. Jason Isaacs' Timothy is facing financial ruin, drug issues, and suicidal ideation. And that's to say nothing of the Ratliff brother kiss that broke the internet last episode. And I assume Posey's Victoria is going to be detoxing now that her prescription is gone.
New episodes of The White Lotus air Sundays on HBO as part of the 2025 TV premiere list. We'll jut have to wait and see which characters actually make it out alive.
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