2023 Rewind: Will Sharpe Wasn't Originally Cast for 'The White Lotus' – Guess Who Was

This piece is part of EDGE's 2023 Rewind series. We're reaching into our archives and sharing some of our favorite stories from the past year.

Will Sharpe wouldn't have been flashing his buff physique on Season 2 of "The White Lotus" if the show's casting had gone as originally planned. The original pick was a very different actor.

How different? Try Ryan Murphy regular Evan Peters, who has also played the speedy superhero Quicksilver in the X-Men movies and the MCU's "WandaVision."

The revelation, originally reported by Deadline, was made by series producer David Bernad, who was delivering a keynote address at the Berlinale Series Market in Germany on Feb. 22.

As things worked out, Sharpe ended up in the role of Ethan Spiller, whose marriage to Harper (Aubrey Plaza) has cooled off on the sexual front, but who, even so, becomes inflamed with jealousy when he suspects his player best friend Cameron (Theo James) of putting the moves on his wife.

The show included scenes where both Sharpe and James showed off plenty of skin. But that could have been "Dahmer" and "American Horror Story" hottie Evan Peters in those revealing scenes.

"That part was the last part we cast in the season," Bernad revealed, "and originally it was supposed to be Evan Peters, but for whatever reason – scheduling or timing – it didn't work out."

When the show couldn't secure Peters for the part, Bernad cast a wide net, looking for someone who wasn't another "familiar" face.

"We were in Rome auditioning Italian actors, and I was jetlagged Googling at 4am and I came across Will Sharpe in 'Giri/Haji,' which is a brilliant show in the UK," the producer recounted.

"I'd never seen him before and he was just incredibly talented. I looked at his other work and realized he was kind of a chameleon."

So is "The White Lotus," which morphed from a Hawaiian vacation resort in Season 1 to a seaside property in Italy in Season 2. The upcoming Season 3 will likely be set in Asia, Bernad teased.

"We've tried to work in Asia a lot and hopefully season three will be our chance to make something happen there," he told the audience.

What do you think, "Lotus" fans? Was the way the casting worked out a missed opportunity to see more of Evan Peters, or was it destiny at its best that delivered Sharpe to the role?