Jennifer Coolidge on how The White Lotus has changed her life and boosted her career

LOS ANGELES – She was never quite a household name, but character actress Jennifer Coolidge’s scene-stealing turns in the American Pie (1999 to 2012) and Legally Blonde (2001 to 2003) movies earned her a cult comedy following.

Then along came the first season of the social satire The White Lotus (2021), a dark comedy miniseries in which she plays a privileged but dysfunctional guest at a posh Hawaiian resort – and she was finally able to flex a different set of acting muscles.