I have a confession to make, and I don’t think I’m the only one who feels this way. I’m happy HBO’s White Lotushas returned but down right down that Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya McQuoid isn’t a part of the current cast. Yes, there is some solace in seeing Patrick Schwarzenegger’s Saxon naked, but I would love to see how Tanya would disrupt the guests on the entire island in Thailand.
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I also think Tanya would do her best to make sure she would catch a glimpse of Saxon naked too.
Coolidge previously toldThe Advocate that Tanya wasn’t just a fan of the gays; she was one of us in spirit. She threw herself into our world with open arms, oblivious to the dangers around her, trusting the wrong people but doing so with an undeniable love. That tragic yet campy connection made her beloved in LGBTQ+ circles.
In her new film Riff Raff Coolidge takes a different direction from Tanya.
Jennifer Coolidge as Tanya in The White LotusHBO
In the film, Coolidge plays Ruth, a woman caught in a whirlwind of crime, chaos, and unexpected humor. She leads a stellar cast, and she admits that it was the script that first drew her in.
I asked her what it was like to lead an all-star cast that includes Gabrielle Union, Ed Harris, Bill Murray, and Dustin Hoffman, “Leading the cast? Well, I’m not sure about that, but I sure did like the job,” she said with a laugh. “I was grateful for this role because I liked the script so much. Then they were putting the cast together, and when I found out who was involved, I was like, ‘OK, yeah, I’m definitely in.’
“I especially liked the way the story was told. It’s a wild, wild ride. It moves really fast. It’s interesting, it’s complicated, and then these totally unexpected funny moments come out of nowhere. You don’t usually get that mix of humor and extreme danger. But this film has it, and it makes for a great way to tell a story.”
Given that she’s played everything from high society oddballs to women in desperate situations, I asked Coolidge if she was more of a “riffraff” type like Ruth or a high-class Tanya in real life.
She hesitated before answering. “I feel like there’s no way to answer that without sounding either conceited or completely misguided about myself,” she joked. “I loved both parts for different reasons. But, you know, I guess … well, I mean, Greg from White Lotus was a total creep, so if I had to pick, I’d rather be with Ed from Riff Raff than Greg!”
Of course, as much as we love Coolidge for her roles, we love her even more for being one of the LGBTQ+ community’s most vocal and genuine allies. She's friends with Tim Bagley, who recently appeared in Somebody Somewhere. “Oh, he’s the best,” she gushed. “I’ve known him for a long time. He’s the creme de la creme of people.”
Her love of Bagley mirrors her love for our LGBTQ+ community, and her support remains as strong as ever. As we spoke, I told her just how much her voice means right now, especially with everything happening in the world. I asked her if she had a message of support for our readers.
“I think when things get really bad, and I don’t want to say I couldn’t have imagined things being this disturbing, because I don’t know what’s ahead of us,” she admitted. “But it’s incredibly hard to stay hopeful when things feel like they’re crumbling. Sometimes I turn on Instagram, and I just can’t handle the daily bad news. I think we all have to be careful about how much of it we take in. Because we are going to get out of this. It’s just going to be a rough ride.”
She paused, clearly thinking deeply about the weight of the moment. “I worry about young people the most,” she continued. “It’s just so hard. I can’t imagine being a young kid, seeing things finally look good, and then suddenly, this horrendous ruler comes in and tries to turn everything around. There’s going to be so much suffering. But I’m also praying for a miracle. I’m hoping for some great, positive thing we don’t even know about yet.”
She sighed. “I don’t mean to be such a bummer. I just … I can’t even think about it too long, or it keeps me from trying to do what I can to help. As an older adult, I feel like the least I can do is provide some guidance. I don’t think I’m doing a very good job, but I’m trying. I just know that it's so important to continue to be a strong ally.”
Jennifer Coolidge as Tanya in The White LotusHBO
