Natasha Rothwell reveals how Belinda returns to “The White Lotus” for season 3 (exclusive)

No one is more excited about Natasha Rothwell's return to The White Lotus than the actress herself.

"I would be on set, even when it wasn't my day shooting, just to watch the magic unfold," Rothwell tells Entertainment Weekly about the top-secret third season of creator Mike White's HBO dramedy. "And I would be gagged — as if I hadn't already read all the scripts! I'd be like, 'Oh, s---.' I really do think that this season is magic. That's the only word."

Related: The White Lotus creator teases 'supersized' season 3: 'It's going to be longer, bigger, crazier'

After playing White Lotus Maui's spa manager Belinda in season 1 of the critically acclaimed satirical vacation anthology, Rothwell excitedly revealed the news on social media in April 2023 that she's checking back in as the only returning character for the Thailand-set season 3. But details of how or why Belinda relocates from Hawaii have been kept under tighter security than liquids at TSA ever since. "The tension has been unbearable, honestly," Rothwell says. "My hairdresser, the cab driver, people have been shaking me down for information and I'm just like, 'I've signed my life away. I can't tell you anything.'"

Until now. Rothwell is finally able to spill her secrets about what brings Belinda back into the world of The White Lotus with "main character energy" after wealthy (but fickle) resort guest Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) crushed her dreams of opening a wellness business together in the season 1 finale.

"She's still working at the White Lotus, and she's in Thailand doing sort of an exchange program to learn more about the wellness programs that the Thailand White Lotus offers," Rothwell reveals. "She's going to be a guest for the first time, even though she's taking classes and it's a work trip. She's staying at the hotel, which is something that she hasn't done before, and so we get to see her really dip her toe in the other side of life of the upstairs/downstairs of White Lotus."

Rothwell says White Lotus creator White was "really drawn to Asia" and exploring spirituality through that lens, which is why the series is heading to Thailand for season 3. So not only is Belinda experiencing the culture shock of being in a new country, but she's also going to be a fish out of water living in the luxury that the White Lotus offers its guests.

Related: Jennifer Coolidge breaks down The White Lotus season 2 finale ending: 'Poor Tanya, she misjudged'

"She's like, 'Oh, someone's going to come in and clean my room and I don't know them?'" Rothwell says. "She gets a firsthand look at some of the things that I think went unnoticed by her [in] season 1. It's a really cool exploration of status and her journey and reconciling the fact that her dreams of owning the spa never came to fruition, so what do you do? 'I'm going to pick myself up and learn something new,' and still grow in her own way."

When audiences last saw Belinda, she was reeling after Tanya callously informed her that she was pulling her funding for Belinda's business plan, and just left a sum of money as a consolation prize. "She was so devastated by Tanya taking what little hope she had and shattering it," Rothwell says. "Over the course of the Italy season of White Lotus in the world that we've created, she's been trying to dig herself out of that sadness and really be inspired again. Her purpose for coming to Thailand is to have a dream again."

Related: Evan Peters almost starred as Ethan in The White Lotus season 2

As for whether Belinda is aware of Tanya's tragic (and perhaps karmic) fate at the end of season 2? "I can't confirm or deny," Rothwell says with a cryptic smile.

Signing up for the White Lotus job exchange program represents the first time since Tanya that Belinda has put herself out there again professionally. "She thinks she's going to throw herself into the deep end and learn more about herself and hopefully be ignited to dream again," Rothwell says. "That's a really beautiful thing that we see this season with Belinda — her eyes are being opened in new ways."

Rothwell related to Belinda's season 3 journey on a deeply personal level, because she lived in Tokyo for a year in her 20's when she was "similarly searching" for herself. "I was really wanting to see the world in a new way, and the funny thing about that kind of travel, especially being a westerner going to Asia, you think you're going to go there and just disappear," she says. "But wherever you go, there you are. You're going to find yourself and you're going to have to start dealing with the fact that you have some issues. We'll see Belinda meet herself in a beautiful way."

And because it wouldn't be a season of The White Lotus without a dead body, Rothwell laughs as she tries to "tiptoe" around teasing this season's mystery. "It's going to sound esoteric, but death is a part of life, and when you're on a spiritual journey, you do the whole full circle experience," she says. "I think audiences are not going to be ready for how that is explored this season."

Season 3 will also star new cast members Walton Goggins, Carrie Coon, Leslie Bibb, Jason Isaacs, Parker Posey, Michelle Monaghan, Aimee Lou Wood, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and Blackpink's Lalisa Manobal. But since Coolidge's Tanya didn't survive her own return in season 2, does that mean Rothwell's Belinda could continue that trend?

"The only thing I can say is be ready for anything," Rothwell teases. "It's kind of a hallmark of HBO. You think Game of Thrones, right? You love these characters and you can't imagine any of them not being there. But yeah, it's going to be a surprising experience. And the world of White Lotus is expanding in bigger ways too — while I'm the only character from season 1 that's coming back, we do get to meet a voice we heard season 1, which was my son, who will be introduced in this season."

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Finally meeting Belinda's son "raises the stakes" on her experience this season. "We're wanting to root for her, but we're also wanting to root for her and her son," Rothwell says. "I can't get into particulars, but her son is older. He's finishing up school. It's that weird part of life when you realize your parents are human and you're an adult, and there's this kind of friendship that develops. I'm excited for audiences to see Belinda in relationship to her son and how they grow together over the course of the season."

Rothwell was so invested in Belinda's journey that she basically binge-watched all of season 3 by reading every script in one sitting. "The amount of times I would gasp and make noises ... " she trails off with a laugh. "It was just me and my dog on the couch, and he was so confused. I was on the edge of my seat, and then at the end, I was just like, 'Oh my God. I can't wait for the world to see this.' This will definitely top all of [your expectations]."

The White Lotus season 3 premieres Feb. 16 on HBO.

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