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Patrick Schwarzenegger is addressing speculation that his famous parents, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, somehow helped him land a role in season 3 of The White Lotus.
“I know there are people who’ll say I only got this role because of who my dad is,” Patrick, 31, told The Sunday Times in a profile published on Sunday, February 23. “They’re not seeing that I’ve had 10 years of acting classes, put on [high] school plays every week, worked on my characters for hours on end or the hundreds of rejected auditions I’ve been on.”
He added, “Of course, it’s frustrating and you can get boxed in and you think at that moment, I wish I didn’t have my last name. But, that’s a small moment. I would never trade my life with anyone. I’m very fortunate to have the life and family that I have, the parents I have and the lessons and values they’ve instilled in me.”
Exes Arnold, 77, and Shriver, 69, were married from 1986 to 2011, during which they welcomed children Katherine, Christina, Patrick and Christopher. (Arnold also shares son Joseph Baena with Mildred “Patty” Baena, whom he secretly welcomed during his marriage to Shriver.)
Despite Arnold and Shriver’s divorce, their family remains close.
“I hang with my family all the time,” Patrick told The Times. “I live within a few minutes of my dad.”
In fact, Arnold, Shriver and most of Patrick’s siblings supported him at the official White Lotus premiere earlier this month. Patrick plays Saxton in the Thailand-set season 3 of the HBO anthology series created by Mike White.
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“I thought, ‘There’s no way I’m going to get this, everybody is up for this.’ I’ve been a massive fan of the show since day one,” Patrick recalled. “It was my dream goal, I think I manifested it.”
Patrick learned that he scored the role less than one week after he proposed to longtime love Abby Champion.
“I was like, ‘Eek, sorry, I’m gonna be gone the next seven months, so we’re going to have to push the wedding to next year,’” Patrick jokingly recalled to the British newspaper.
Ahead of filming White Lotus, Patrick also overhauled his fitness routine — often hitting the gym with dad Arnold — to get in shape to play Saxton.
“Me and my dad train together when we can,” the actor added in Sundayy’s profile. “We were both filming in Toronto recently, staying at the same hotel and worked out together every day. People [who] don’t like me on social media will say, ‘Why aren’t you bodybuilding?’ People always want you to do something else, but he’s undoubtedly been an influence in my life.”
Patrick previously praised his family’s impact on him in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly last year.
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“Family continues to be super important, even as we get older,” Patrick told Us in September 2024. “It’s nice as we bring in new people, whether it’s my fiancée, or Katherine with her husband, [Chris Pratt], or so on and so forth. We always have other guests that come to the dinner.”
According to Patrick, his mother hosts weekly meals for their entire brood.
“It’s kind of an open invite for friends to come, family to come, and it’s just a nice way to get everyone together,” he added at the time. “The world is always moving so fast. Everyone is so busy with kids and with work and traveling that it’s a nice moment throughout the week to settle down and have everyone be together.”
