Dr. Arizona Robbins is ready to check into The White Lotus.
Jessica Capshaw, who portrayed Dr. Robbins from 2008-2019 and in 2024 on ABC’s long-running Grey’s Anatomy, opened up to her Call It What It Is podcast cohost and former Grey’s costar Camilla Luddington about auditioning for the latest season of the hit HBO drama.
After discussing the buzzy season three finale of The White Lotus, Capshaw revealed that she auditioned for the role of Austin-based country club wife Kate Bohr, which ultimately went to Leslie Bibb.
“I remember getting the audition and being like, ‘I mean, I’m just such a huge fan of the show.’ So I was giddy with excitement. And it’s always so fun to put together an audition and see where it goes, and then see it come to fruition because what’s unbelievably remarkable and wild about the casting process is we’re all very different,” said Capshaw, 48.
The actress continued, “We all have a very different take on it. So watching Leslie’s, I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ And I was so in, and I thought she was fantastic.”
Season three of The White Lotus saw a group of eccentric tourists take a trip to the fictional resort’s Thailand location. Bibb’s character was on vacation with two of her lifelong friends, New York City lawyer Laurie Duffy (Carrie Coon) and actress Jaclyn Lemon (Michelle Monaghan). The trio’s storyline examined the changing nature of female friendships over time, and the role that wealth disparity plays in this dynamic.
While Capshaw complimented Bibb’s performance, she and Luddington, 41, had their own thoughts on season three’s ending for the characters’ ill-fated girls’ trip to Thailand.
Luddington said, “I’m gonna be honest. I really wanted one of them to say, ‘Go f—- yourself.’ I’m not sure how I feel about them all being kumbaya a little bit.”
“I wanted them to be like, you have a massive falling out at dinner, and they’re walking together, and he pulls them in for the picture, and they’re, like, reluctantly out together. And then with the gunfight, you see them all together because they’re trauma bonded, and they realize what matters in life,” continued Luddington.
Despite not being cast for the role, Capshaw is determined to land a spot on the Emmy-winning show. “I’ll audition. I’ll just keep auditioning. That’s what I did for Grey’s. I just kept auditioning, it took me three times,” Capshaw recounted. “I’m hoping it’ll just take two for Mike White and The White Lotus.”
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Luddington jumped in and suggested, “I think that we should come on as sisters. Yes, Mike, come on, you need us as some sisters.”
“I’ll audition,” a determined Capshaw said. “I’ll just keep auditioning. That’s what I did for Grey’s!”
In a previous podcast, Capshaw revealed she had initially auditioned for Nurse Rose, a recurring character on seasons 4 and 5 of the medical drama. That part went to actress Lauren Stamile. A year later, she tried out for the part of Dr. Sadie Harris, which went to Melissa George. The third time was the charm when she landed the role of Arizona Robbins.
New episodes of Capshaw and Luddington’s iHeart Radio podcast Call It What It Is drop weekly, and include Grey’s Anatomy recaps and pop culture analysis.
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