- The White Lotus fans have had their minds blown
- Many took shared their shock at spotting star of The Zone of Interest
- German actor Christian Friedel plays hotel manager Fabian
The White Lotus season 3 fans have had their minds blown after recognizing the star of harrowing holocaust drama The Zone of Interest hiding in plain sight.
German actor Christian Friedel plays the manager of the Thailand White Lotus where season 3 of Mike White’s popular thriller series is set. So far, the show has only debuted two episodes many fans were “shook” upon discovering where they recognize the actor from.
Read more: Patrick Schwarzenegger calls The White Lotus nepo casting rumors ‘frustrating’
Friedel led the way in Jonathan Glazer’s stark 2023 drama The Zone of Interest. The film told the story of a German family who live next to a concentration camp. The White Lotus star played the family’s commandant patriarch Rudolf Höss.
The film went on to become a heavy hitter during the 2023 awards season, eventually taking home two Academy Awards. Despite this, it still took fans two whole episodes to figure out that they were watching the same actor appear in both projects.
Read more: The White Lotus season 3: Greg fan theories so far
Needless to say, they were taken aback.
The White Lotus fans react to spotting Christian Friedel
The overall consensus online was that fans couldn’t believe that Friedel played both parts. Especially considering how different each role is tonally.
In The White Lotus, hotel manager Fabian has so far come across as quite light, humorous and awkward. Some fans have even labelled him “goofy.”
The role couldn’t be further from the hard-nosed and emotionless Nazi officer the star plays in The Zone of Interest. However, that’s the whole point of being an actor, isn’t it?
Watching White Lotus and floored myself realizing the goofy manager is the actor that played Rudolf Höss in The Zone of Interest pic.twitter.com/sj1FhxnNcE
— Kenjac (@JackKennedy) February 24, 2025
“Watching White Lotus and floored myself realizing the goofy manager is the actor that played Rudolf Höss in The Zone of Interest,” said one shocked person on X.
“When you realize the goofy manager in The White Lotus is the actor playing Rudolf Höss in The Zone of Interest,” said another, who made a whole video about their shock discovery.
“I was shook”
When you realize the goofy manager in The White Lotus is the actor playing Rudolf Höss in The Zone of Interest pic.twitter.com/i5jsEfSAkn
— Kristen Van Nest ✍️ Author of WHERE TO NEST (@KristenVanNest) February 24, 2025
“I was shook when I learned the resort host in the new season of White Lotus is Rudolf Höss in ZONE OF INTEREST lol,” added another fan.
I could not for the life of me figure out where I recognized the one manager in white lotus from and had a real interesting moment when I realized he played Hoss in Zone of Interest
— pat tully (@PatullyPortman) February 24, 2025
“I could not for the life of me figure out where I recognized the one manager in white lotus from and had a real interesting moment when I realized he played Hoss in Zone of Interest,” said someone else.
Looks like people really need to get better at recognizing faces.
Patrick Schwarzenegger brushes off nepo baby accusations
Shock role discoveries aside, one of show’s new stars, Patrick Schwarzenegger, has brushed off accusations that he only got the role due to his famous parents.
The 31-year-old actor is the child of action star Arnold Schwarzenegger and journalist Maria Schriver. Speaking to The Sunday Times, he called the ‘nepo baby’ label “frustrating”.
“I know there are people who’ll say I only got this role because of who my dad is,” said Schwarzenegger. “They’re not seeing that I’ve had 10 years of acting classes, put on school plays every week, worked on my characters for hours on end or the hundreds of rejected auditions I’ve been on.
“Of course, it’s frustrating, and you can get boxed in,” he added, “and you think at that moment, I wish I didn’t have my last name. But that’s a small moment.”
