Patrick Schwarzenegger's thrilling performance throughout Saxon's friendship with fellow vacationer Chelsea helps him change from an arrogant, self-absorbed person to a more vulnerable and honest young man.

Schwarzenegger has spoken about the difficulties he faced with filming certain scenes of the third season and the challenges he faced with depicting Saxon's growth as a character. Since the release of season 3 of The White Lotus, Schwarzenegger has expressed his strong interest in starring as the sadistic Patrick Bateman in Luca Guadagnino's remake of the 2000 horror classic, American Psycho, and after watching him as Saxon, I believe he is perfect for the role.

Patrick Schwarzenegger's Role As Saxon In The White Lotus Proved How Well He Could Play Patrick Bateman

Schwarzenegger's Saxon Proves He Has The Capability To Play Patrick Bateman

Adapted from the 1991 novel by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho shows Patrick Bateman as a successful investment banker who appears to have everything going for him, including a promising career, a beautiful fiancée, and an esteemed social circle. Underneath his charming exterior, Bateman is a sadistic serial killer who appears to be hurting people to fill the empty void he consistently feels in his life. American Psycho is one of Christian Bale's best movies, and his performance as Patrick Bateman is one of the best in his career.

In The White Lotus, Patrick Schwarzenegger portrays Saxon as an individual who is empty beneath his exterior, similar to Christian Bale's Patrick Bateman in American Psycho. Throughout season 3, there are several scenes where Schwarzenegger perfectly depicts Saxon's arrogance and lack of care for humanity, particularly towards women whom he dismisses as status symbols. This is shown in The White Lotus season 3, episode 4, where he uses a swastika to speak to a group of sunbathing women, representing his detachment from society, and in season 3, episode 6, where Chelsea regards Saxon as "soulless."

Chelsea is the one character throughout season 3 of The White Lotus who truly sees Saxon Ratcliff's absence of empathy and emptiness in his personality, character traits that would serve well in the remake of American Psycho. While several actors have been fancast as Patrick Bateman, Patrick Schwarzenegger's portrayal of Saxon throughout The White Lotus shows that he can easily master the selfish and cruel personality that made Christian Bale's performance of Patrick Bateman such a success in the original.

Saxon's Backstory In The White Lotus Is Already Similar To Patrick Bateman's

Both Characters Are Fixated With Their Appearances & Are Privileged With Wealth

Throughout The White Lotus, season 3, it's shown that Patrick Schwarzenegger's character's backstory has eerie similarities to Patrick Bateman in American Psycho. Both characters come from prestigious, wealthy backgrounds and have successful "careers" in finance, despite never being seen doing any actual work. Both characters are also narcissistic, manipulative, obsessed with keeping up appearances and have no respect for women, as seen through Bateman's flaunting of his wealth and dismissal of his fiancé, Evelyn.

The White Lotus' Saxon also shares a notable similarity to the Patrick Bateman archetype in that they both hide their darker personas behind external masks. Throughout season 3, Saxon outwardly es himself off as a wealthy young man who has everything he wants, but as shown through his disturbing behavior with his brother, Lochlan, he has a troubled mindset that he hides behind his spoiled exterior. Similarly, in American Psycho, Patrick Bateman outwardly portrays himself as a successful and stable businessperson while hiding his dark desire to torture and kill individuals.

Patrick Schwarzenegger Deserves A Bigger Leading Role After The White Lotus

Schwarzenegger Has Been Acting In Movies & TV Since 2006

Patrick Schwarzenegger was greatly praised for his portrayal of the troubled and charismatic Saxon Ratcliff in The White Lotus. Schwarzengger began his acting career in the mid-2000s, with small roles in movies such as Stuck in Love (2012) and Grown Ups 2 (2013), before appearing in television shows including Scream Queens (2015) and The Staircase (2022). He has also been in movies such as Midnight Sun (2018) and Moxie (2021), but he has yet to land more leading roles in movies and shows.

His performance as Saxon Ratcliff throughout The White Lotus allowed Schwarzenegger to further explore his range as an actor and greatly showcase his skills in drama and comedy. The role of Patrick Bateman, which Schwarzenegger has described as a "dream role," would offer him further opportunities to expand on his career (via Entertainment Weekly) if it ever happens. And even if it doesn't, I'm excited to see what he will do next after The White Lotus.

Source: Entertainment Weekly