The White Lotus Season 3: What Emmy Category Will Sam Rockwell Be Eligible to Contest in? Here’s the Twist

Sam Rockwell, who portrayed the role of Frank in the third season of The White Lotus, might be eyeing the Emmy Award for Best Guest Actor. However, here’s a twist.

Written by Rashi Desai , Entertainment Journalist

Published on Mar 23, 2025 | 06:01 PM GMT | 15K

Sam Rockwell via Getty Images

Sam Rockwell's role of Frank in the recent episodes of The White Lotus has caught the attention of the audience as well as the award academies. With the appearance of the actor as Frank in the new season, he initially was expected to contest in the category of Best Guest Actor at the Emmys.

However, as per the new rule put forth in 2024, Rockwell's role in the show exceeds the limit of being eligible for only a guest star.

The actor's character is introduced in the fifth episode of the third season, which is titled "Full Moon Party."

Frank steps in as Walter Goggin-player Rick's Thailand-based friend, who opens up about the event over the years, which led him to explore his sexuality and go on to become sober.

Following the Oscar-winning actor's performance in The White Lotus, the fans believe he should be nominated for the prize. However, according to the reports of The Hollywood Reporter, if Rockwell gets on the list of nominees, it wouldn't be in the category of a guest actor.

Instead, the actor could find his name under the Best Supporting Actor category. The reason behind the same is that Rockwell is also to appear in the sixth, seventh, and eighth episodes of the show in some capacity.

As per the rule implemented in 2024, the guest actors "are defined as appearing in less than 50 percent of all eligible series episodes."

Meanwhile, irrespective of Rockwell's time on the show, it is expected that the ongoing season will continue with the drill of getting as many nominations as possible.

The first season of the show went on to bag eight nominations, while the second season received nine nominations at the award ceremony.