No matter what movie or TV series role is thrown at her, Jennifer Coolidge has always slayed. Unfortunately, as Tanya McQuoid in The White Lotus, it was her turn to be slayed — but despite the target on her back, she ended up dying herself while trying to escape her would-be murderer Quentin.
After discovering that Quentin (Tom Hollander) was conning her, Tanya manages to turn the tables somewhat, taking down a bunch of “evil gays” before falling to her death in a botched escape attempt. Although fans were devastated at the fan-favourite character’s departure, she at least left viewers with a line that has now been immortalised into the meme hall of fame, “Those gays, they’re trying to kill me.”
But despite her iconic delivery of the comedy series‘ line, Coolidge revealed in an interview with Variety that she was way too seasick to anticipate the scene’s impact.
“That was one of the last scenes I filmed for the show, and I was seasick and stuff,” she explained. “There were a lot of logical things I should have come up with. There’s so many things people are sending me. [When filming], you’re not thinking memes down the line for some reason. Maybe other people on the show were, but I wasn’t savvy enough to spot them.”
When asked by the outlet how it felt to be a “gay icon who ended up murdering a bunch of high-end-gays,” Coolidge added. “That is so Mike White [White Lotus’ showrunner]. I wouldn’t have come up with that scenario myself, it wouldn’t occur to me. Gay men can be catty, but mostly they are the good guys in a lot of films that I’ve seen.”
“But Mike White made these guys kind of wicked, very corrupt soulless guys. He told me, ‘You end up getting taken in by this group of — well, let’s just say they’re evil gays.’ I just got so riveted, I was so enthralled. You know, Tanya’s not onto them, but she’s finally being appreciated and she’s finally having a good time on this horrific trip.”
If you’re already hungry for more insane antics from the drama series, check out our guide to The White Lotus season 3. Otherwise, stay tuned for updates on Legally Blonde 3, with Coolidge set to reprise her role from the iconic ‘90s movie.