After his role as the cheeky nephew Jack in the Emmy-winning series, The White Lotus, Leo Woodall has now starred in the Netflix adaptation of David Nicholls’ One Day. Woodall plays Dexter Mayhew alongside Ambika Mod’s Emma Morley, the roles previously brought to life by Jim Sturgess and Anne Hathaway in the 2011 film of the same name. As Woodall steps into stardom, he reveals one incident on set that made him almost regret his newfound fame.
Woodall debuted in television through the BBC soap opera, Holby City. He was later cast in the film, Nomad, which is yet to find a release date. In the meantime, he made his feature film debut with the Russo brothers’ 2021 film, Cherry.
Leo Woodall’s One Set Experience May Have Left Him Scarred For Life
Leo Woodall comes from a family of actors. However, his mother was not entirely impressed by the idea of him joining the industry. After his supporting role in Vampire Academy, he joined the Sicily-set season of The White Lotus. Woodall earlier revealed that his family was “quite flabbergasted” by the twist at the end of the series (via People), which was exactly how the general audience felt too.
For Netflix’s One Day, Woodall successfully got through an audition and a chemistry test, where he and actress Ambika Mod impressed the casting directors. Appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Woodall revealed his new experience of leading an ensemble cast in the 14-episode series. He particularly recalled one of his set experiences to Jimmy Kimmel, which absolutely left him in shock.
While filming, the Citadel actor was chewing gum and wanted to spit it out. He shared that the bin was close by, but when he stood up and began to walk towards it, he was stopped by a crew member. When he told them that he was just going to spit his gum out, the crew member held out their hand for him to spit into it. Woodall was in disbelief at the whole incident and wondered whether this was going to be his life as a star. He shared with Jimmy Kimmel Live!:
“It was. Yeah, I was in a bit of a shock. You know, there was a day on set where I wanted to spit my gum out. And the bin was literally you know in row one over there. And I went to spit out and someone kind of said, ‘No. Where are you going?’ And I said, ‘I’m just spitting my gum out.’ They like held out their hand and offered me to spit. I said, ‘No. This cannot be. This can’t be my life.’ So that was a bit of a shock.”
One Day has received a welcoming response from the critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has a 91% approval rating from 33 reviews. The website consensus read, “One Day is by turns giddy and somber but always swooningly romantic.”
Leo Woodall Almost Missed The White Lotus Audition
Leo Woodall surprised Jimmy Kimmel with the revelation that he almost missed his audition for The White Lotus. When asked if people started bombarding him with text messages and appreciation for One Day, Woodall shared that he was “shocking” at responding to texts or even checking his phone. He went on to share that he didn’t check his email when the audition for The White Lotus came through. Leo Woodall shared:
“I’m getting a lot of texts from people. But I’m shocking at responding to texts or even properly looking at my phone. I actually nearly missed the White Lotus audition cuz I didn’t check my email. It was in my inbox for about two weeks and I didn’t know. So you know, last minute, I got the Red Alert.”
Kimmel suggested that the delayed response could have played an important factor in his casting. Kimmel shared that when Woodall didn’t respond in time, the casting directors would have probably thought, “He must have a lot going on.” Woodall also agreed, sharing, “I think that’s probably what got me the gig.” The White Lotus is now available for streaming on Max.
