Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sam Nivola defend their incest scene in The White Lotus; call it ‘great storytelling tactic’

The in vogue(p) installment of flavour 3 of The edward d. White genus lotus gave the viewers a lot to unpack, especially when it comes to the Ratliff brothers. Patrick Schwarzenegger and Sam Nivola talked about their incest scene in the latest episode to The Hollywood Reporter and claimed show creator Mike White put it in for more than ‘shock value’. (Also Read: The White Lotus star Jason Isaacs clarifies 'double standard' remark about male nudity post backlash: ‘Used wrong words')Unpacking The White Lotus incest sceneFor anyone who missed it, this week’s episode takes the kiss between Patrick’s Saxon and his younger brother Sam’s Lochlan a little further when they have a threesome with Charlotte Le Bon’s Chloe. Throughout the episode, both brothers recall what happened the morning after a drug-fuelled bender, with matters getting worse when Chloe insists on talking about it in detail in front of Aimee Lou Wood’s Chelsea, much to Saxon’s embarrassment. Reactions have ranged from claiming the scene is placed just for shock value to wondering where Mike is taking their story to.The actors defend the polarising scenePatrick reiterates that everything in The White Lotus has a deeper meaning, with his character in particular dealing with ‘what is it like to be a man’. He adds, “Mike does a great job with my character with that scene, but also in past seasons of always bringing something that is really fun and outrageous and sparks a conversation that gets people talking, but also has to do a lot with the pilgrimage of the characters’ story and where he’s going. And here, especially with the relationship Saxon has with his little brother. There’s always more than what just meets the eye of the shock value on the screen.”Sam also stated that they ‘trusted Mike’ with the scene, claiming that it’s ‘impossible for it not to be charged when you’re literally naked’ in front of cameras. He also added, “We really trusted Mike because there’s always a very shocking, crazy, intense moment in every season. It’s never just for the sake of being shocking, it always serves the story. And that scene is really the inciting incident for where our relationship goes next. It’s a great storytelling tactic.”About The White Lotus S3The third season of The White Lotus is set in Thailand, with Sarah Catherine Hook’s Piper playing the Ratliff sister, Parker Posey’s Victoria, and Jason Isaacs’ Timothy playing the parents. Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Walton Goggins, Lalisa Manobal, Michelle Monaghan, Lek Patravadi, Natasha Rothwell, Tayme Thapthimthong, Jon Gries and Sam Rockwell also star in the series streaming on JioHotstar in India. New episodes drop every Monday at 7:35 am.