Patrick Schwarzenegger reveals how much his shocking incest White Lotus storyline character is inspired by his family
Patrick Schwarzenegger, the son of Arnold, has spoken out about the storyline of his character in White Lotus, and how much it's inspired by his own family.
Schwarzenegger stars in the newest season of the HBO show as Saxon Ratliff, appearing alongside Aimee Lou Wood, Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, and Michelle Monaghan.
The son of the Hollywood legend has been the talk of the town after the first couple episodes, in particular due to his shocking incest storyline and full-frontal nudity in the show.
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While there is of course no influence of incest within Schwarzenegger’s family, there is one aspect that played a role in influencing his character – weird rich people families.
The White Lotus focuses in large part on the uber-rich, leading an interviewer to ask what insight he got from being around people with a ‘lot of privilege, or [he was] around families that had this sort of wealth’.
He responded to this by saying: “I think there are similarities and crossovers there, except this family is so far away from what my family was growing up—or probably any normal family is.
“But whenever I read a script or a character, I always try to think about the where, when, and why about the character, and what his relationship is to different individuals, and the background and the backstory that he's from.
“You try to think of different similarities or differences that you have in your own personal life: things you can draw on and through to bring elements of this character to life.”
He went on to address elements of the storyline he related to, saying: “There was a storyline that I related to, and resonated with, of living in the father's shadow.
“This character had a very successful family, a very successful father.
“He worked under his father; he was always trying to make a name for himself, make a path for himself, was constantly vying for his dad's attention and acceptance and approval.
“I wouldn't say they're directly the same as mine, but there are definitely elements of it that I could draw upon.”
Patrick may be predominantly known as the son of Arnie, but this is a moniker he looks set to shed as his career has begun to heat up over the last few years.
The star appeared in Gen V, Amazon’s The Boys spin-off series, which received positive reviews across the board.
In addition to this, and now The White Lotus, he is set to star alongside Al Pacino in the upcoming Billy Knight.
His role in the new season also earned him praise from his famous father.
Arnie said in a post on Instagram: "I was so pumped to take a break from filming to celebrate @patrickschwarzenegger at the White Lotus Season 3 premiere.
"What a show! I could claim to be surprised to find out he has a nude scene, but what can I say - the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Don’t miss it this Sunday - trust me."
Topics: Arnold Schwarzenegger, HBO, TV, TV and Film, The White Lotus
Michael Slavin