Michelle Monaghan has revealed an unnamed Hollywood producer threatened to end her career when she was starting out as a young actress.

The actress, 48, who stars in the current season of The White Lotus, told how the producer said he would ‘make sure’ she didn’t work again after she disagreed with a type of publicity he wanted her to do.

Speaking on the Reign with Josh Smith podcast, she said: ‘There was a time in which the producer, who will go unnamed, wanted me to do some publicity that I wasn’t comfortable doing for all the right reasons. 

‘And I was adamant that I would not do it. And there was a lot of like, ‘you’re never going to work again.’ And, ‘I’m going to make sure this happens,’ and a lot of name calling. It was quite harsh and I was quite young and new to the industry.’

However, Michelle stood her ground and said she now imparts the same lesson to her daughter Willow, 14, and son Tommy, 10, who shares with husband Peter White.  

She said: ‘But I’ve always followed my instincts. It’s something that I impart with my daughter all the time, as well as my son. It’s super important. 

Michelle Monaghan has revealed an unnamed Hollywood producer threatened to end her career when she was starting out as a young actress.

The actress, 48, who stars in the current season of The White Lotus, told how the producer said he would ‘make sure’ she didn’t work again

‘I think that was one of the very first times in the industry, in this specific industry, that I had to advocate for myself and once I stood my ground anything else that kind of came beyond that, I’ve always been able to just stand firmly in what I fight for…

‘Confronting whether it’s fear, or a person, or a kind of material, anything that you don’t feel like you’re ready to to kind of confront, when you take that leap of faith and you get over that barrier you know what’s on the other side is such a huge learning and empowering experience.’ 

On The White Lotus, Michelle plays Jaclyn, a TV actress on holiday in Thailand with two female friends.

The trio, who have known each other since childhood, are not as close as they appear however and whenever one leaves the room, the other two immediately start gossiping about her.

Michelle spoke about female compeтιтion in the entertainment business, which she thinks has got much better since there are now more women working in positions of power behind the camera.

She said: ‘It’s changed a lot in the 25 years I’ve been in the business, it’s changed because of a lot of opportunities that female producers, showrunners, writers, directors [have been given]. 

‘Honestly, for the first ten years of my career, I don’t know if I worked with another woman, I’ve always had traditionally male co-stars so I was particularly excited at this opportunity where I saw Mike’s (White) had written a storyline for three women in their forties, women of a certain age and that excited me. 

‘It’s for creatives in those positions that make the change. When I look at instrumental moments in my career, they were women who gave me those opportunities, every single one. 

She said: ‘It was quite harsh and I was quite young and new to the industry’ (pictured in 2002)

On The White Lotus, Michelle plays Jaclyn, a TV actress on holiday in Thailand with two female friends (L-R Carrie Coon, Michelle and Leslie Bibb)

‘The ones that really are most meaningful to me in my career have been working with female producers, female writers and directors as well. 

‘I’ve learned so much from them. It’s been a complete journey, we’ve slowly been recognising that there is a sisterhood and there’s power in numbers.’ 

Michelle was thrilled when she learned she had been cast on The White Lotus, even shedding a tear of joy with her husband Peter.

She said: ‘I got the call from my agent that they were casting and that they wanted to have me audition for the role of Jacyln and I was even just surprised at that. 

‘I didn’t know that they were casting. I was so excited, obviously a huge fan of the show and a long time fan of [show creator and writer] Mike White. 

‘And so I auditioned and even just getting the audition sides to have a glimpse into what season three was going to be I felt so privileged. 

Michelle was thrilled when she learned she had been cast on The White Lotus, even shedding a tear of joy with her husband Peter

‘I was so excited… And then I got the call like 10 days later that I got the gig and I’m not going to lie, I’ve been in this industry for 25 years and it was a pinch me moment. I was with my husband when I found out and I shed a tear. 

‘I was thrilled to be able to collaborate with Mike and shortly thereafter they sent me the entirety of the eight episodes and I jumped on a flight to Australia because we were going there for Christmas to visit my husband’s family and I did not sleep that entire flight. 

‘I read it front to back and it was one of the most exciting reads… I got on the phone actually with Parker Posey and we were talking about our good fortune and Leslie [Bibb] as well, we jumped on the phone and Walton [Goggins]. We were all just really excited.’