THE WHITE LOTUS HALEY LU RICHARDSON - I’m Learning Who I Really Am

HOW DANCING CARRIED THE ACTRESS THROUGH HARD TIMES AND LED HER TO A CAREER HIGH

- DANIELLE BACHER

Haley Lu Richardson exudes an effortless, self-deprecating charm. Between bites of pineapple and dragon fruit during a People photo shoot in Malibu, the actress radiates good humor in the sweltering September heat. "Organic deodorant doesn't work-it makes you sweat more," she declares with a laugh. "My shirt smells like feet." Her quirky personality often gets compared to that of her breakout White Lotus: Season 2 character Portia, the quasi-nihilistic Gen Z assistant who gallivants around an Italian resort in wacky, mismatched outfits, trying to find purpose in the world. But lately Richardson, 28, is experiencing a different kind of transformation. In July she got vulnerable on Instagram, telling her 2.2 million followers that she was going through a difficult time. “I was experiencing deep heartbreak and fully letting myself feel how scary that was, how unknown,” she says. Richardson declines to give more specifics but has no regrets about posting. “I let myself feel sadness. And I felt compelled to share that I wasn’t doing that great. It was so overwhelming, the effect that had, because I immediately felt less alone.”