'The White Lotus' star Haley Lu Richardson reveals why she turned down 'Midsommar' role

The White Lotus star Haley Lu Richardson turned down a meeting with Ari Aster for a role in the horror film Midsommar, the actress recently revealed.

Speaking on In the Envelope: The Actor's Podcast Haley Lu Richardson admitted that despite being impressed by the well-written script, she rejected the project.

"I remember reading it; it was such a well-written, creepy script," Richardson said. "I actually still haven't seen the movie because I kind of can't bring myself to watch it. They wanted to meet me...."

Richardson divulged she passed up on the film because she was tired of doing disturbing films after starring in the 2016 psychological thriller Split; about a mentally ill man who abducts teenage girls.

"I had actually done Split, I think, a year or two before," Richardson said.

"And I was like, I don't want to do another disturbing movie right now. I just don't have it in me, going around and crying at these disturbing things. It wasn't something that I wanted, and I felt really strongly about that. So I didn't even take the meeting."

She acknowledged that Midsommar has become an iconic movie and Florence Pugh was excellent in the lead role, but she believes everything happens for a reason. Despite not taking the role, Richardson's career has been on the rise after her breakout performance in The White Lotus.

Richardson plays Portia in The White Lotus, personal assistant to Tanya McQuoid, (Jennifer Coolidge) who joins Tanya and her reluctant husband Greg (Jon Gries), on their vacation to a lavish Sicilian resort.