Jennifer Coolidge revealed that she faced a major career slump before The White Lotus, admitting that she had ‘no guidance’ and ‘wasn’t aggressive enough’ trying to land roles.

The actress, 63, praised for her portrayal of Tanya McQuoid in the hit series, admitted that after playing Stifler’s Mom in American Pie, her career took a downward spiral, leaving her with a series of unimpressive ‘odd jobs.’

While Jennifer landed several iconic roles over the years, she saw a significant decline after American Pie: Reunion in 2012, despite appearing in more than 129 productions.

She remained acutely aware of the lack of opportunities during that time. In 2016, BuzzFeed ran an article with the headline: ‘Just want to let you know that the actress who played Stifler’s Mom isn’t ᴅᴇᴀᴅ.’

Now, in an interview with The Sunday Times, Jennifer admitted that she never learned how to ‘play the game’ in Hollywood.

She said: ‘I got very odd jobs – I had no guidance at all. I didn’t know how to play the game. 

Jennifer Coolidge has revealed that she faced a major career slump before The White Lotus (pictured), admitting that she had ‘no guidance’ while struggling to land roles

The actress praised for her portrayal of Tanya McQuoid in the hit series, admitted that after playing Stifler’s Mom in American Pie (pictured), her career took a downward turn

‘I played a lot of highly strung rich women. People thought, ‘Oh, that’s just what she does.’

In the season two finale of The White Lotus, Jennifer’s character Tanya realized that a group of gay men she had befriended on vacation were plotting to kill her to steal her fortune.

This moment led to one of the show’s most memorable lines, when Tanya exclaimed: ‘These gays, they’re trying to murder me!’

Known for her roles in Legally Blonde and American Pie, Jennifer had long been a household name among comedy fans. However, The White Lotus propelled her to even greater fame.

Her performance as Tanya in the satire of the ultra-rich earned her global recognition, winning awards at the Golden Globes, Emmys, Critics Choice Awards, and SAG Awards.

Despite the show’s past success, its third season has faced criticism, with fans and critics calling it ‘slow’ and ‘boring’ due to its leisurely pace.

Viewers have called for the return of fan-favorite Jennifer, whose over-the-top antics as Tanya brought levity to the cerebral satire.

American writer Joyce Carol Oates led the charge against the new season, eviscerating it in a series of posts on X.

While Jennifer landed several iconic roles over the years, she saw a significant decline after American Pie: Reunion in 2012 (pictured), despite appearing in more than 129 productions

Read More White Lotus receives backlash from fans and critics alike over ‘glacially slow’ third season

‘The wisest way to see season 3 of The White Lotus is to wait until the series has ended & watch the entire season with remote in hand to fast-forward,’ she wrote in one post. 

‘White Lotus is certainly roiling with subplots & back stories while moving with glacial slowness in the present,’ she wrote in another. 

‘The first two seasons seemed to have been more evenly paced & with much more humor. Is there any humor in season three at all? Facial expressions of actors are becoming tic-like, repeated; exaggeratedly widened eyes, slack drugged faces, miming hilarity.’

Oates isn’t the only critics to call out the series, with The Standard calling it ‘agonisingly slow’ while The Wellesley News said that the series had an ‘abnormally slow pace’. 

However, many others have come to the show’s defense, even going as far as to accuse naysayers of having low attention spans.