Jason Isaacs wasn't blending smoothies for the monetary gain. Four months subsequent to the premiere of The White Lotus' third season, the 62-year-old actor, who portrayed Timothy Ratliffe, the family patriarch, disclosed in an interview with Variety published on June 16th that each cast member received a meager sum of $40,000 per episode. "Actors seldom discuss their salaries publicly since it seems absurdly disproportionate to our efforts—donning makeup and adopting humorous voices—often causing public discontent," Jason remarked. "Yet, compared to what actors typically earn for high-profile TV shows, that's a bargain basement price."
Despite banking around $320,000 for the entire season, Jason earned an equivalent amount as less experienced cast members, such as Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sam Nivola, and Sarah Catherine Hook, who played his on-screen offspring. Yet, the Harry Potter veteran brushed it off. "I never undertake projects for money," he clarified. "I've fared well financially. People might assume I'm rolling in dough, but unfortunately, I've been rather irresponsible, increasing my expenditures to match my earnings, and more or less squandered everything I've accumulated over the years."
Even though the show didn't exactly line their pockets, the Peter Pan actor insisted that none of his co-stars would trade their experience for anything in this world. "In reality, we would have shelled out our own money to be part of it," he joked. "We probably would have offered a limb." E! News reached out to HBO for comment, but as of yet, there has been no response.
What made their on-set experience so extraordinary? Filming at a plush resort in Thailand was undoubtedly a highlight, albeit with its own set of qualifications. "It was akin to a theater camp, albeit a semi-open prison camp where you couldn't escape each other's company," Jason told The Guardian in February. "Tensions and difficulties arose; I'm unsure if they spilled over from on-screen to off-screen or if they would have transpired regardless."
"Alliances were forged and shattered, romances blossomed and wilted, friendships were made and broken," he continued. "It's a lengthy stretch for individuals to be away from their families, with an open bar and all the wildness that Thailand offers." And though he wasn't immune to the drama, his wife, Emma Hewitt, who observed the myriad of personalities on set, had her reservations. "I can't pretend I wasn't entangled in some off-screen drama," he confessed at the time. "I was somewhat accustomed to it, but within a couple of weeks, my wife exclaimed, 'Some of these people are utterly insane.' I replied, 'No, dear, it's just a bunch of actors away on location. You've forgotten what it's like.'"
