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He went viral back in November when he posted a recording of a television director criticizing his apartment during a Zoom audition.
But Lukas Gage seems to have gotten the last laugh after landing a role in HBO’s critically acclaimed new miniseries The White Lotus, which premiered on July 11.
The 26-year-old Euphoria actor appears on his new show as Dillon, a staff member at an elite resort for high-paying guests.
Moving on up: Lukas Gage, 26, who went viral after director Tristram Shapeero criticized his apartment during a Zoom audition last year, landed his next big gig on HBO’s miniseries The White Lotus earlier this week
In the show’s opening episode, Gage’s character ceded center stage to other staff members at the resort, including the high-strung manager (Murray Bartlett) and a new trainee (Jolene Purdy) who hides her impending pregnancy from her boss.
The miniseries, which is created and directed by Enlightened creator Mike White, traces the interactions between the resort staff and a series of demanding guests who are accustomed to getting their way.
Connie Britton stars as the oblivious CFO of a wellness company, while Steve Zahn plays her husband who’s worried he might have cancer.
Jennifer Coolidge appears as a wealthy woman struggling to cope with the recent death of her mother, and Alexandra Daddario and Jake Lacy play a newlywed couple on their honeymoon.
He threatens to ruin their romantic getaway after he learns the manager gave away their honeymoon suite to another couple but still charged them the exorbitant fee.
High-end: Gage stars as one of the staff members at an exclusive Hawaiian resort for wealthy clients; still from The White Lotus
Whoops! In November, he went viral after he posted a video to social media of a virtual audition. The awkward video showed Shapeero making fun of his living space without realizing he could be heard
Gage, who played a supporting role on the first season of HBO’s hit high school drama Euphoria, rose to prominence outside of his acting roles after he posted a Zoom audition gone wrong.
The incident occurred in August of 2020, when the actor tried out virtually for a role in a show to be directed by Tristram Shapeero, who wasn’t named in the initial tweet.
The English-born director didn’t realize his microphone was still on and began speaking dismissively of Gage’s living space in the background.
‘These poor people living in these tiny apartments. I’m looking at his background and he’s got his TV.’
Gage politely responded that he could hear Shapeero, before stating: ‘Yeah, I know it’s a s***ty apartment, so just give me this job so I can get a better one.’
He captioned his video: PSA: if you’re a s**t talking director make sure to mute ur s**t on zoom mtgings.’
Awkward! ‘These poor people living in these tiny apartments. I’m looking at his background and he’s got his TV,’ before Gage admitted it was a ‘s****y apartment’
Since posting the video, the original post has been viewed more than 10.3 million times.
Gage didn’t specify why he waited three months to post the clip, and he also didn’t share what he was audition for, though Shapeero was directing an upcoming FOX sitcom titled Pivoting at the time.
After Gage called him out, Shapeero said he was ‘mortified’ and ‘so, so sorry’ for his remark.
‘I’m living in a four by four box, it’s fine,’ Gage replied. ‘Just give me the job and we’ll be fine.’
Shapeero, whose credits include Veep, Community, Parks and Recreation and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, later identified himself, despite not being named in the video.
Changing his tune: Shapeero initially denied he had anything to apologize about before sharing a groveling statement with Deadline later in November; seen in 2013 in LA
After the video went viral, the director denied having anything to apologize about when approached by a freelance journalist, though he changed his tune days later in a groveling statement to Deadline.
‘First and foremost I offer Mr. Gage a sincere and unvarnished apology for my offensive words, my unprofessional behavior during the audition and for not giving him the focus and attention he deserved. My job is to evaluate performers against the part I am trying to cast. Lukas deserved better,’ he said.
‘I was using the word “poor” in the sense of deserving sympathy, as opposed to any economic judgment. My words were being spoken from a genuine place of appreciation for what the actors were having to endure, stuck in confined spaces, finding it within themselves to give a role-winning performance under these conditions,’ Shapeero continued.
‘As I say on the video, I’m mortified about what happened. While I can’t put the proverbial toothpaste back in the tube, I move forward from this incident a more empathetic man.’
More to come: Since then, Gage is on an upswing. Since starring in Euphoria, he will appear in the upcoming Peacock miniseries Angelyne and will be featured in the sci-fi rom-com Moonshot; seen in 2017
Gage’s career continues to be on an upswing since the embarrassing incident.
Since last year, he has had a recurring role on the Hulu series Love, Victor, a spin-off of the comedy Love, Simon, about a gay high schooler struggling to come out to his friends and family.
The actor will also appear in the upcoming Peacock miniseries Angelyne, about the mysterious Los Angeles icon of the same name who’s best known for buying billboards advertising herself around the city and driving a pink Corvette.
The White Lotus currently boasts an impressive 88 percent fresh rating from critics surveyed by Rotten Tomatoes.
Gage’s next big project is the sci-fi rom-com film Moonshot, which also stars Zach Braff, Lana Condor and Cole Sprouse.
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