Aimee Lou Wood has spilled the tea on filming the third season of The White Lotus, having opened up during her appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show. On the BBC One chat show, which aired on Saturday, 22 March, Aimee joined a star-studded lineup including Sir Stephen Fry, Joanne McNally, Big Zuu, and Yungblud. The actress, who portrays Chelsea in the hit HBO series, dished out some behind-the-scenes secrets, particularly about a scene where her character is bitten by a snake.
She revealed that a special fake leg was created just so the snake could bite her character without harming her. "Oh yeah, real snakes... this amazing thing happened, a man came over to my house before I went to Thailand, he had this laser, he scanned my leg, then he created my leg. He matched my skin and everything... the snake actually bit the fake leg. I have no idea what it was made out of," Aimee recounted on the show.
She further explained the significance of the snake bite in the show, saying: "The snake bites my character, it's all very symbolic... there's a lot of snake symbolism and it's the year of the snake now. She gets bitten and it's not great but she's alright because she's weirdly robust in that way. But yes the snake bit the fake leg." Aimee, also known for her role in Netflix's Sex Education, also confessed that while she doesn't fear snakes, her co-star Walton Goggins does, which added a layer of complexity to shooting the scene.
Reports from the Express indicated that Walton's deep-seated fear of snakes proved particularly distressing on set. "I'm not [scared of snakes]. Walton [Goggins] it's his worst fear. It's not the first time he's had to interact with them [in a scene]... it's his biggest phobia," she revealed, before recanting an incident that led to Walton being rushed to the hospital. Aimee added, "He was honestly having panic attacks in between takes, he was having to really gear himself up. One nipped him and he had to go to the hospital."
"I’m putting my full oomph into running away, I fell, cut all of this side of my body open... I had this mark on my shoulder. Snake day was quite chaotic!" Aimee said, giving an account of the day filled with unexpected turns. Her enthusiasm was evident, with a hint of admiration for how they managed to cope with the challenges on set.
In other news, Aimee expressed how challenging the secrecy surrounding the eagerly anticipated third series of The White Lotus on HBO has been for her. She confessed, "It's painful, I've been sitting on secrets for so long. I have too much information. I have too much power, I don't like it. I'm going to be so relieved when episode 8 is out. It's been tough. People really want to know. I say, 'Then you'll be angry with me for ruining it. I want to tell you..."
The episode of The Jonathan Ross Show where Aimee appeared was broadcasted on Saturday, 22 March 2025, and added much anticipation for fans awaiting the release of the show. The White Lotus is available to stream via HBO.
