This season of The White Lotus has everything: incest, full-frontal nudity, robbery, poisonous snakes, and, as usual, a mysterious murder. It’s hard to stand out amid all that, but Arnas Fedaravičius somehow manages to as Valentin, the hotel’s “wellness mentor,” who personally sees to the health and happiness of a trio of childhood frenemies (played by Carrie Coon, Leslie Bibb, and Michelle Monaghan). Their barely concealed hatred for one another boils over when Jaclyn (Monaghan) betrays Laurie (Coon) by sleeping with Valentin after the girls go on a rambunctious night out with their wellness mentor and his two besties (Julian Kostov and Yuri Kolokolnikov).
Despite causing so much drama, Fedaravičius’s Valentin is the show’s reliable source of unflappable cheer. But how much can we trust his warm smile, gentle caretaking, and eight-pack abs? Fedaravičius spoke to the Cut about his character, what it was like filming season three, and the personal policies he always follows.
Before The White Lotus, some of your most well-known roles were in fantasy shows like The Last Kingdom and The Wheel of Time. What was it like stepping into a Hawaiian shirt and a world that includes going to the club?
The first day on the set of White Lotus, I’m like, Oh my God, I really wanted to finally just put on a shirt and step into something rather than have 45 minutes of two people pulling a corset on me in the cold. It felt refreshing. In some backward way, all of a sudden you start missing the stuff — like, Wait, it’s just gonna take me five minutes to get dressed? It’s very different.
Boxing has been a part of your life for a long time, and although you don’t box on The White Lotus, it’s an interest for your character. How was it having those two worlds meet?
Being there and having access to all the gyms — it’s a dream to go to Thailand and train. It was nice to take other cast members to different gyms and have this routine. It’s like a playground for Muay Thai; you always have access to food that’s specifically useful for that, there’s always a gym around the corner, there’s a sauna, and so on.
Did you start in Muay Thai?
I started with boxing, then I did a little bit of kickboxing, and at some point I joined Muay Thai. For the past four or five years, that was part of my routine, part of my mental-health plan. Otherwise I just have lots of energy, and I like to put it into a strenuous activity.
The cast stayed at the Four Seasons together, and it sounds like there were some real summer-camp vibes. Who was your closest “camp friend”?
I spent a lot of time with Nicholas Duvernay,Duvernay plays Zion, the son of Natasha Rothwell’s Belinda. although everyone bonded on different occasions. We’d go to different parties, like boat trips and whatever. Some people picked up on our bromance. When we moved hotels, they would put us closer so we could be neighbors.
You have the freedom to travel if you want to, and perhaps if you have a longer time off, you can leave, but then you’re like, Wait a minute, I’m at the Four Seasons — why would I go? HBO was very generous in that they’re aware of the implications of time, that you’re so far away for a long time from your family. They were like, “Bring them out!” I think the visitors had the most White Lotus experience. We were working, but they were actually guests. My girlfriend really enjoyed it, obviously.
You know Valentin better than anyone, having played him. Should we trust him?
Oh, of course. He’s your health mentor. Why wouldn’t you trust the health mentor who’s gonna tell you all the things that you wanna hear, give you good exercises, relax your mind with a massage, and take really good care of you? That’s the one person you should be trusting because you paid to trust him, as someone who’s coming to visit the place.
Now, his friends … yeah, you should also trust whoever he brings.
The White Lotus is known for its depiction of the hotel guests as generally obnoxious toward the employees. Have you ever had a job where you had to deal with obnoxious customers?
I worked for a little bit in luxury retail at Selfridges in London. You’d sometimes experience very wealthy people that throw around clothes or whatever. But I think the most surprising experience was, for a good four months, I was part of this temp company. Every day you’d book yourself for different kinds of companies. Sometimes it was gyms, sometimes it was somebody’s app. It gets a little boring, and at a certain point you start coming up with ideas to make it more fun. You wish people a good day, and people sometimes would say, “I don’t need you to tell me to have a good day.” I’m like, Woah.
Valentin and Jaclyn break a cardinal rule of friendship: sleeping with your friend’s crush. What are your rules for keeping your friendships healthy?
Respect their boundaries. In general, check in on your friends. Especially when life takes you apart in different directions, don’t be the one waiting for your friend to call you. Be the one to reach out.
Valentin is a yoga instructor, among other things. What do you think is the right etiquette to follow in a yoga class, for both the instructor and the students?
A friend of mine introduced me to yoga when I was 19, and that was the first time I was like, Wait a minute, this is how you get high without weed. I’d say shower, especially if you go to hot yoga, because it’s already smelly in there. If you’re a dude, especially if you’re the only dude at a yoga class, don’t be a weirdo, don’t stare. If you’re an instructor, respect everyone’s level. I’ve seen yoga instructors who try to push you to a place where you’re like, “I don’t know if I’m comfortable, physically, to do this.” If you’re doing yoga nidra, don’t fall asleep and snore, please. You’re lying there and meditating, and all of a sudden someone is just like … [Snorts.] Please don’t.
Valentin also has no problem mixing work and pleasure. What is your No. 1 rule in the workplace?
I respect everyone’s boundaries. If you’re doing something more intimate, there’s obviously intimacy coordinators and such, but always check in on your scene partner, and always keep it light. You don’t wanna be intense. Make people laugh if you can without trying to be likable too much, and keep it playful. Be open: That’s what I like to bring, and I sometimes overexpect that from other people.
Also, be kind to everyone. I have a friend who says, “Nice guys finish last, but they always finish because the bad guys spend their lives looking over their shoulder.” Whatever department, everyone is there to do a job.
What is your No. 1 rule for a successful dinner party?
I like to prepare everything and take care of everything, so that the others don’t have to worry about anything. I like when people ask, “Shoes on or off?” Mostly it’s gonna be on, but coming from Europe, it’s a very specific thing. I like when people check. I don’t wanna be that guy.
I like taking care of people, so I run around and pour everyone’s glasses. I get a lot of pleasure from that.
Do you host often?
Whenever I have a more prolonged place that I stay at, because I’m on the road a lot, I do like to host. We have themed events. I love taking care of people like that. I like creating vibes so that people feel at ease; there’s good music, there’s incense, there’s good food.
How do you create a vibe?
Music is very important. I have a pretty symbiotic relationship with my Spotify algorithm. When people come in, I pick one track to set off the rest of the night. There’s some sort of a continuity to music, and I’m a big believer in having a soundtrack to your life. It sets the tone.
Are there any rules you have for your home?
I’m a traveler. I feel like a guest in most places, but if I’m sharing spaces or anything, I would always say the shared spaces should be kept clean. If you have housemates or whatever, whatever you do in your room is up to you, but if we’re sharing space, let’s just keep it clean for each other.
What did you listen to on the White Lotus set?
When we were hanging out, we played a lot of Etta James, some funk music from the ’70s. There’d be some James Brown occasionally but then we’d veer into this song called “Baby,” from the movie that Walton Goggins did about the Emerson brothers.
What is the last app you downloaded on your phone?
Let me see … Run Lines With Me. I was very fortunate. I’ve been busy auditioning for things. That’s an app that helps you record your lines and then record the other’s lines, and it supposedly helps you memorize. I downloaded it, but I didn’t use it. I have other ways of learning lines.
What’s your No. 1 fashion rule?
Keep it simple, keep it comfortable. That’s a couple of rules. Whatever you put on, make it look like it’s effortless. I love wearing suits. It shouldn’t overpower who you are.
Is your personal style similar to Valentin’s?
He walks around in flip flops and slides. I don’t personally do that that much, but the shirts, the party stuff that he goes out wearing, I really like that.
What’s your No. 1 rule for sending a gift?
Write a message, preferably by hand. I think people appreciate it. People say it’s the thought that counts, but if the thought is very personalized, I think it’s more valuable than any gift. I like a wax-seal stamp. It’s pretty. I hope it’s not a dying art form, but I like to travel with lettering paper, perhaps it’s from Italy, that you could see a little Amalfi sign. I like stationery.
Where do you go for your stationery?
Depends where I am. If I’m in Rome, there’s a bunch of places where you can get this paper that I recently learned about, called Amalfi paper, that has a specific thickness to it. If I’m in London, there’s this place called Choosing Keeping. In L.A., I haven’t yet found one so I order stuff online. I like fountain pens and letter paper. I always have some on me.
Did you ever send your girlfriend love letters with the wax seals?
That was one of the first things I did. We met in Germany and went for dinner, and I knew she was gonna leave before I left. I wrote this letter, and it was a wax seal, and I left it at the reception. I think that might have had an impact.
What’s your No. 1 rule for tipping?
Oh my God, it’s so dependent on where you are as well. In the States, I’m always like, “Oh my God, did I tip enough? Please like me for tipping you, sir.” I play it by ear — in Europe the service charge is included.
I’m not sure about the coffee-shop tipping culture. I’m on the fence with that. I’m still learning; do we have to tip everywhere? I don’t know. Teach me, Americans.
What’s your No. 1 rule around your phone, for both yourself and for others?
During dinner time, put it away. Your brain is kind of fighting for attention. If you keep it further away, you can focus better. When you’re having a conversation with someone, don’t multitask. We say we like to multitask and we’re good at it. We’re not.
Going back to The White Lotus, it seems like a lot of Valentin’s job is giving people advice in the way that they want to hear it. How do you like to give advice?
Only give advice if you’re asked for advice. I think that’s part of the job of working in wellness. People want to hear that they’re doing good. Especially if you’re in a high-end hotel like that. In Valentin’s work, and because those people are only there for a week, you’ve gotta reassure them that they’re very impressive.
This season of The White Lotus is skewering wellness culture. What are your personal wellness rules — how do you separate what’s really beneficial from the scammier side of the industry?
Whether it’s a massage or going to a personal trainer, I like the “no bullshit” approach. Some people need compassion, and it’s useful. I like the straight-up “Your footwork’s wrong,” or if it’s a massage, I’m like, “Yeah, it’s gonna hurt. That’s what I’m here for.” Coming from the backgrounds that we come from, if you’re learning tennis or anything, your coach is gonna say, “That was shit, do that again.” In the States, I think people need a little bit more “No, you’re doing fine.”
When you were single, what was your No. 1 rule for dating? What helped you get to the point that now you’re in a relationship?
Always ask questions. The best conversation is always when people get to really be heard. Be present, be aware, be interested in the other person. Don’t make it about yourself constantly. Don’t be creepy. Just be simple, ask about their lives, and hear everything they say. Perhaps that’ll get you another date.
It did for you!
It did.