The White Lotus season three is in full swing, with yet another murder mystery rocking the hotel chain.
Mike White’s award-winning drama returned in February, with new faces joining the cast, and some stars reprising their roles.
As is customary for the show, the first episode revealed that someone will tragically die this season, but their identity remains a mystery until the finale.
Among the returning stars is Natasha Rothwell, who portrays spa manager Belinda Lindsey. Although the 44-year-old actress has TV credits dating back to 2011, viewers may not know her previous roles. Below, we take a look at her career so far…
The Kansas-born actress found her big break as a writer on Saturday Night Live (SNL), during its 2014-2015 series.
She initially auditioned to be on the iconic sketch show’s cast but didn’t get the part. However, Rothwell made such a good impression that she landed a spot in the writers’ room.
In a recent TED Talk, she revealed that her first ‘pinch me moment’ happened when she saw her name in the SNL writers’ credits for the first time.
“I didnt want folks to think I got in to satisfy a requirement,” Rothwell shared in a 2021 interview with the Los Angeles Times.
“I wanted to show that I belonged. I wanted to be at the table at SNL and I wanted them to think, ‘F***, shes funny. I like what she has to say. And I see her and, oh, that joke is great.'”
She continued: “That’s a lot to carry. And I think that’s also an expression of privilege for white writers: They dont know what its like to walk into a room and feel like the audition is not over. I didnt feel seen, always. Putting my hand up was me wanting to know if my voice could be heard. It was Pavlovian for me.”
Rothwell later found her confidence when she landed a writing gig on HBO’s hit comedy Insecure.
Originally aired between 2016 and 2021, the beloved drama boasts a stellar 97 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes.
She was the first writer hired to work alongside show creator Issa Rae and later joined the cast as Kelli Prenny. Although she was a supporting character, Kelli quickly became a fan favorite, with audiences often raving about her comedic one-liners.
It was her time on the HBO hit that fuelled Rothwell’s confidence as a writer and performer, which impacted her approach to The White Lotus role.
In the same 2021 LA Times interview, she confessed: “The confidence that I had coming into White Lotus ran laps around what I started Insecure with.”
Rothwell went on to explain that she did not simply accept the opportunity to play Belinda with ‘no questions asked.’
Instead, she requested to speak to the showrunners and discuss her place on the production as a person of color, telling the director that she wanted to “make sure [we] do this right.”
“Theres no way I would have had that confidence had it not been for Insecure,” she shared.
After Insecure, Rothwell featured in the 2023 musical comedy Wonka, which starred Hollywood heavyweights the likes of Timothée Chalamet, Olivia Colman and Hugh Grant.
The following year, the SNL alum combined her writing and acting expertise for Hulu series How To Die Alone.
The storyline follows Melissa (Rothwell), a down-on-her-luck woman working at JFK airport, who decides to live life to the fullest after a near-death experience.
Wearing the hat of series creator and lead actor, Rothwell’s show debuted to overwhelming praise. It currently boasts a 92 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes
The White Lotus continues Sundays on HBO.
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