TVLine's Performer Of The Week: Carrie Coon

THE PERFORMER | Carrie Coon

THE SHOW | The White Lotus

THE EPISODE | "Killer Instincts" (Mar. 30, 2025)

THE PERFORMANCE | The dynamic between longtime friends Jaclyn, Kate and Laurie has been fascinating to watch all season long on HBO's vacation dramedy, gushing about how much they love each other one minute and then sniping behind each other's backs the next. Tension has been simmering below the surface, though, and it came boiling up this week, which gave Coon a chance to shine as Laurie dropped a barrage of truth bombs on her pals before embarking on a wild sexual escapade of her own.

The three women didn't need to say a word to convey how awkward it was between them at dinner after Jaclyn's fling with Valentin was revealed, with Coon's pursed lips and loud calls for more rosé spelling out exactly what was on Laurie's mind. When Laurie confronted Jaclyn about the betrayal, both Jaclyn and Kate turned on her for being so miserable, and Coon's shocked face let us see how deeply their words wounded her. But her face turned defiant as Laurie unloaded on them, calling Kate fake and Jaclyn vain — words she's been wanting to say for years, maybe decades — and then heading out solo to the Muay Thai fight.

That would've been enough for one episode, but Coon then flipped a switch from drama to comedy and showed off her screwball chops as Laurie met up with Valentin and went home with his friend Aleksei for a round of athletic sex. After that, Aleksei took the opportunity to hit Laurie up for money, and Coon seamlessly transitioned from sincerely sympathizing to politely fending the guy off. Then she even gave us some physical comedy as Aleksei's jealous ex came knocking on his door, leaving Laurie to scurry out of bed half-naked and then shimmy out of a window, getting slapped in the head by his ex on the way out. It was a rude awakening for Laurie that maybe a vacation fling isn't worth the trouble — and a welcome reminder that, even among a stacked cast, Coon is in a class by herself.    

Scroll down to see who got Honorable Mention shout-outs this week...

Fifteen episodes in, NCIS: Sydney fans don't know a whole lot about Bluebird "Blue" Gleeson, but this week's episode — Mavournee Hazel's best showcase to date — afforded us a concerning peek into the forensic scientist's difficult past. After a U.S. Navy choir singer was murdered whilst performing along Blue's favorite pop star, Blue came to realize that Nova was a proverbial bird in a gilded cage, and was being quietly drugged into compliance. This epiphany hit Blue hard because she, too, at one time clearly survived a similar existence. (As if the myriad locks on her flat weren't a major clue.) Though this episode shared no details, Hazel's performance as Blue scrambled to free Nova from her prison — a deft conveyance of empathy mixed with both heartbreak and grave concern — endeared us further to the quirky scientist. We want to know more, yes, but almost are afraid to. — Matt Webb Mitovich

When we say The Righteous Gemstones' Judy Gemstone is unpredictable, we really can't emphasize it enough: We never have any clue what crude and oddly specific insult is going to tumble out of her mouth next, but we do know Edi Patterson's delivery will give us some of the week's funniest TV. Such was the case in Sunday's episode, when Judy tried to sabotage her dad's relationship with Lori Milsap (Megan Mullally) by intimidating Lori with a one-on-one chat. Judy's plan was totally ineffective (duh), but we were blessed in the meantime with some of Patterson's most go-for-broke physical comedy and unrivaled line readings. We'll simply never forget Judy trying to goad Lori into sexually harassing her; there's life before we heard the sentence, "Don't be bumpin' on my bare t—ty meat," and there's life after. — Rebecca Luther

Found's Kelli Williams has been doing fine work in the wake of Jamie's return and in flashbacks to Margaret's messy months after his vanishing. But this week's scenes hit different, starting with the exact moment Margaret's husband walked out on her, with their daughters. Frazzled amidst burning something on the stove, poor Margaret met the bombshell with a weak, "I only have so much fight left in me. And I need it for Jamie." On the flip side, at episode's end, Williams gave us a Margaret fired up like seldom before, as she put imprisoned Sir on notice. "You always think that you're one step ahead of everyone, but you're wrong, because I'm me," she trumpeted. "You know what my superpower is, and from now on it will be trained on you." Sir had a comeback, sure, but he also understandably flinched! — M.W.M.

Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in the comments!