White Lotus star Sabrina Impacciatore said her role in the HBO series changed her life.
HBO
HBO’s second season of The White Lotus proved that the popular Mike White dramatic comedy has only improved with time. With season 2 of the series being set in Italy, viewers were introduced to various new characters, including Valentina (played by Sabrina Impacciatore), the hotel manager. Recently, Impacciatore chatted with The Hollywood Reporter about her role in the HBO series and the impact that playing Valentina has had on her life. “It was all beyond my expectations, but it definitely lived up to my dreams,” Impacciatore said. “Being part of this project was a big, enormous chance for me. Because I was finally able to truly see things that, here in Italy, [otherwise] just wouldn’t be possible.”
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Though Impacciatore initially gained notoriety in Italy thanks to roles in Paolo Paolo Virzì’s N (Io e Napoleone) (2006) and Gabriele Muccino’s There’s No Place Like Home (2018), she remained relatively unknown in the US. Prior to her part on White Lotus, Impacciatore’s most notable appearance in American film was a small cameo in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ (2004), where she played Seraphia.
But according to the Italian star, that’s all changed thanks to her part on White Lotus. She said, “I’ve often been in California, [but] after the first episode aired, everyone recognized me. I’ve become part of a real cultural phenomenon that is followed very passionately.”
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Sabrina Impacciatore Admitted She’d Never Seen White Lotus Before Auditioning for Season 2
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Impacciatore went on to reveal how she secured the role in White Lotus and even admitted that she wasn’t aware of the series before her agent mentioned auditioning for the hotel manager. She said, “I have to confess: I hadn’t seen the first season [when I was cast],” the Italian actor revealed. “In general, I don’t really watch TV series. I simply don’t have time. I was called by my agent who said: ‘This is an important audition; they’ve been looking for an actress for four months now, and they can’t find her.’ I was already shooting a different film at the time, so initially, I said no.”
Still, despite the actor’s initial reluctance, her agent managed to persuade Impacciatore to reconsider. She stated, “[My agent] suggested I watch season 1 of The White Lotus so, that night, I didn’t sleep: I binge-watched all the episodes,” she disclosed. “I swear, it was love at first sight. I thought, ‘This is my sort of thing.’ Drama and comedy in this series are almost overlapping; the lines are very blurry. I got to work [and] to record my audition.”
While Impacciatore ran into some slight issues (her actor friends that were supposed to help her with the audition both contracted COVID), her audition made a lasting impression. Her agent even called to tell her that “everyone was in awe” of her performance. Eventually, Impacciatore got to meet White (the creator of White Lotus), and despite some nerves about replacing season 1’s Armond, the Italian actor truly made Valentina a character to remember.
Impacciatore finished by saying, “What I’ve experienced in the past few months has been truly powerful, powerful as well as spiritual. The support I’ve received has been incredible,” the actor said. “I’m keeping my feet on the ground, |but] I’ve overcome countless challenges and faced many closed doors, I’ve suffered through many disappointments. Now that I have this chance, I want to make the best of it. And I intend to enjoy it.”
You can view the original article HERE.
