The White Lotus is known for its biting social commentary, and its third season continues to subvert expectations through its casting of Aimee Lou Wood and Walton Goggins, whose looks have captured viewers' attention and challenged conventional beauty standards.
Though Wood and Goggins are far from unattractive, they both possess features that stand out in Hollywood's often homogenous landscape.
The pair play Chelsea and Rick, two of the most enigmatic guests at the Thai resort where the latest season is set.
Rick is a cranky, aging playboy with a dramatically receding hairline, while Chelsea is a free-spirited young woman with prominent buck teeth and a slight gap.
Wood's teeth even receive a mention in the show, when Charlotte Le Bon's character, Chloe, tells Chelsea, "I love your teeth," during their first encounter.
Shortly after, the two share a beat of mutual recognition when they grin at each other, revealing the kind of distinctive smiles rarely celebrated on television.
Chelsea and Chloe are portrayed as desirable, magnetic, and completely at ease in their skin, serving as a reminder that charisma doesn't require capped veneers or symmetrical perfection.
The same goes for Rick. The show makes no attempt to conceal Goggins's receding hairline.
If anything, the cinematography highlights it, on several occasions the camera lingers over his gleaming forehead.
What is the 'Hollywood smile'?
The concept of the 'Hollywood smile' has long been tied to perfect white, straight teeth, often achieved through cosmetic procedures like veneers, teeth whitening, and other dental treatments.
Veneers have been around for decades, and according to cosmetic and restorative dentist Dr Fadi Yassmin, they have seen a rapid rise in popularity in the last 10 to 15 years, with more dentists offering that service.
Dr Yassmin says he's seen a recent shift where people are opting for more natural-looking veneers.
While some seek the bright, uniform look popularised by Hollywood stars, "others want what we call biomimetic veneers, which is copying nature and creating a beautiful form".
Professor Roy Judge, Head of Prosthodontics at the University of Melbourne, said people often get caught up with aesthetics over functionality and what clinicians would deem healthy.
"We really need to get away from the Hollywood look being deemed as what you should be aspiring to because health is more important," he said.
Why unconventional smiles on-screen matter
Aimee Lou Wood's decision to embrace her teeth proudly have made waves online and she addressed the frenzy on The Jonathan Ross Show, saying, "I can't believe the impact my teeth are having".
"It's a real full-circle moment after being bullied for my teeth forever," she said.
Her sentiment resonated with many, as the viral moment was shared widely on TikTok with a clip from the show having over 1.1 million likes.
Associate Professor Matt Hopcraft at the Melbourne Dental School at the University of Melbourne said celebrities challenging the notion of perfection could be empowering for onlookers.
"We do need to challenge the idea that there is this kind of perfection that everyone should strive to have their teeth perfectly white and straight," he said.
"There is something really refreshing about people like Aimee Wood, who are saying, actually this is the way that I am and I'm proud of the way that I look and I don't feel the need to change."
"That can be really empowering for a lot of people who might think that they don't like the way that their teeth look or can't afford to have dental treatment to change the way that they look."
He notes figures like Madonna who have also embraced the prominent gap between her front teeth, as important role models.
Other celebrities known for embracing their "imperfect" teeth include Kate Moss, Cynthia Erivo, Ayo Edebiri and Georgia May Jagger who popularised "The London Look".
Everyone's also talking about Walton Goggins's hairline
Meanwhile, Goggins's decision to not hide his hairline has made him an unlikely sex symbol.
His look has earned him admiration from all over the internet, including an entire Reddit thread dedicated to "How is Walton Goggins doing it?" and British Vogue publishing an article titled, "Why I'm Hot For Walton Goggins's Hairline".
Posts on X have also gone viral, with one user saying, "I think Walton Goggins would be less charming if his hairline wasn't clapped. He could easily hide the forehead, but he chooses not to. I vibe with that. He wants to let it breathe."
Balding men should not be a rarity on screen, study says
Despite the popularity of Goggins's look, the representation of balding men in Hollywood remains low according to studies.
About halve of Australian men show signs of visible baldness by the age of 50, yet this reality is often not reflected on-screen.
Dr Glen Jankowski, Assistant professor at Leeds Beckett University points out, "We shouldn't be able to name individual balding actors on TV, they should be so common that they are the norm."
Dr Jankowski's research found that, as of 2014, only 8 per cent of images in 32 popular magazines depicted men with visible hair loss but "today this proportion is doubtlessly smaller".
"Balding men have some representations like Stanley Tucci and Terry Crews but we need more," he said.
"We need to think of how many other talented actors and actresses we are missing out on because of superficial reasons like their head hair amount."
He adds that Patrick Stewart was almost never cast as Captain Picard in Stark Trek because it was believed that a leading man couldn't be bald.
