Michelle Monaghan wants to clear a few things up.
Most importantly,Jaclyn, her character onThe White Lotus,is not a pick-me.
At least not on purpose.
Fabio Lovino/HBO
I think she is someone who makes a moment….
I dont judge her.
But was it a betrayal?
At least one of us is.
Someone else who is having fun?
Taking the partnership, she says, was a no-brainer, as she (like our editors!)
already was a huge fan of the brand and its approach to skin care at every stage of life.
Thats one of the things that I like about U Beauty.
Aging isnt linear, its different for everybody, and I feel like its really, its celebrating that.
I honestly feel more in my skin now at this age.
Are you bracing yourself to see the hate for your character?
Michelle Monaghan:Its so funny.
Even a couple of my friends are like, Oh my God, I hate Jaclyn now.
And then I have friends that are like, Jaclyn, go get yours.
Its that idea of how it triggers you, because it sets up a mirror.
I think that people feel very connected to that dynamic right now so they feel its a betrayal.
For me, playing a character who makes that choice, I dont judge her.
I feel like it was something that wasnt manipulative or malicious.
And [Jaclyns] like,Hey, Im like, Im having fun out here.
You see the high school friendship.
Speaking of high school, I was curious where the friends were from.
We were thinking the Midwest because we all went really different directions.
Like Kate went to Austin, Laurie to New York.
So their values changed all dramatically.
That was my guess, too, a swing state.
We said, lets all share a picture of us when we were 14.
We were trying to really create our own backstory and have a sense and idea of who we were.
So when we all arrived in Thailand, it was really special.
We still have it going on.
Thats amazing, I love that.
Its always coming up.
I think Carrie sent me something the other day.
She was like,Oh my God, I loved your seduction scene of Valentin.
No, we are all in.
My inspiration for her was a butterfly.
Sometimes with certain roles, Im like, if she were an animal, who would she be?
She was a butterfly because shes very colorful and very vibrant, and has a lot of energy.
She comes into a room and demands attention because of her energy.
But beyond that, a butterflys life is very short-lived.
Those are her things that shes fearful of.
Those are real things.
Do you think she was feeling insecure?
Especially after being sent to the old-people pool in episode five?
I love that scene.
And Im like, Fuck this.
We got to get ourselves cleaned up.
We got to get our shit together.
We all hightail it to the bathroom at the club.
And theres this whole scene, this montage where were all fixing each other.
Its a real mission that we are on.
Well, its always about wanting to look good for other women, right?
So you dont judge Jaclyns actions?
I dont judge her.
But listen, I love what everyone is doing.
I love how shes a mirror to everyone else.
Some people are like, they love her for just being her.
And then others are just like, Yeah, she wouldnt be my friend.
Thats not the gal that I want.
I think the whole time she was like,Laurie, hook up with him.
You should have hooked up.
He doesnt pick up, and then its like,Alright, I guess hes just gone AWOL completely.
I guess Ill call Valentin.Hes the butler, right?
Its not like Lauries husband.
Its not like they had a relationship at all.
Yes, the mysterious Harrison.
Whats your take on that relationship?
Mike and I were always sort of wondering, Does she have a monogamous relationship?
Maybe they dont have a monogamous relationship.
And Mikes like, I think that its a little fluid and that kind of tracks for me.
I also personally loved the Trump conversation in episode three.
It felt so real, especially in 2025.
The Trump scene is so good and we knew that.
Thats the genius of Mike, right?
Oh yeah, it hit real different.
It hit real different.
I had no idea.
Scenes like that have become real talkers.
Why do you think these three women are resonating so much with the audience?
He was like,One person would leave and then the other two would start chatting.
Why is it that women do that?
And Im like,We are socially kind of conditioned to do that.
And I think as youve seen in episode six, we start to see the ladies kind of evolve.
For one, Jaclyn finally calls them out for gossiping about her.
She calls them out!
Any hints you’re able to give us for the finale?
Well, I can tell you that the fans will be very, very surprised.
Mike White just does it again in terms of the ending.
He knows exactly what hes doing.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
