As a quintessential Brit, Aimee Lou Wood had never considered herself particularly ambitious. Pursuing one's desires, such as an acting role, struck her more as an American trait, at odds with the reserved demeanor of her staid island compatriots, who preferred to await life's opportunities with patience. However, all that changed when she watched 'The White Lotus.'
During the cultural lull of 2021, as the pandemic drew to a close, Wood, like many around the globe, stumbled upon Mike White's gripping resort drama. She found herself mesmerized by the allure of wealthy individuals indulging their whims on vacation. "I became completely obsessed with the show, and it consumed all my conversations," she admits. "Then, in season two, Will Sharpe appeared, and knowing him, I thought, 'Maybe I could be part of this?'"
At that time, Wood was already a seasoned actress, having graduated from London's prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in 2017. She knew Sharpe from his direction of her in the 2021 Benedict Cumberbatch drama 'The Electrical Life of Louis Wain.' Her career had taken off with roles in the Netflix series 'Sex Education,' which aired for four seasons and earned her a British Academy Television Award. Nevertheless, amidst shooting scenes with stars like Ncuti Gatwa and Gillian Anderson, Wood would sneak off to binge-watch episodes of 'The White Lotus.' When season two concluded, she messaged her agents, urging them to secure her an audition.
"But then I was like, 'Actually, I don't want to do it,'" she laughs. "It puts so much pressure on me. I really tried to talk myself out of sending the audition tape."
Eventually, Wood auditioned for the role of Chelsea, one of what she terms season three's "regular" people (also hailing from Manchester). As a working-class girl attempting to enjoy a Thai vacation with her increasingly irritable older boyfriend (Walton Goggins), Wood saw Chelsea as the group's "misfit." She instantly connected with the character when she discovered in the script that Chelsea was an astrology enthusiast.
"I'd describe her as unfazed," she says. "Which is ironic, because I'm severely fazed. I have a Scorpio moon. But portraying her felt like a brief respite, even when her radical optimism bordered on delusional—I think you need a touch of delusion these days just to keep going."
Wood, now 30, learned she had landed the role while out with friends at a pub. "I started screaming, so it was pretty obvious something big had happened," she recalls. "Of course, I told the waiter, and the bar even played the bloody theme song for everyone to dance to."
Upon arriving in Thailand for filming, Wood was nervous about meeting her co-stars—including Patrick Schwarzenegger, Leslie Bibb, Parker Posey, and Carrie Coon, along with Goggins—and finding her place within the predominantly American cast. "These people live in Hollywood," she says. "I live in my humble flat in Southeast London, and I'm so British in my sensibilities that I wasn't sure how to navigate being around such outgoing and confident individuals. All I ever do is joke about myself. Even the way 'White Lotus' fans talk about me and my teeth—how I don't have veneers or Botox—feels a bit rebellious."
Over the six-month shoot, some aspects of American culture rubbed off on Wood. She realized that it was okay to be ambitious and to embrace her goals and opinions. "I'm now more confident in discussing ideas with directors or making things happen," she says. "After drama school, my first job was a play, and I remember thinking it was so cool to get paid for it. When I landed 'Sex Education,' I thought it was a fluke. Even as it gained popularity, I assumed my success was temporary. It was only recently that I woke up and thought, 'What the hell is my life?'"
Wisely, Wood's next move is to take a vacation of her own, albeit not at a luxurious Thai resort. "I haven't stopped working since leaving drama school, so I'm going to do the subversive thing and take a break at the pinnacle of my career," she says. "I want to process this and let it sink in. I spent much of my life worrying about being weird, and now I'm realizing it could be my superpower."
