‘The White Lotus’: Julian Kostov Joins Season 3 In Recasting

EXCLUSIVE: Julian Kostov (Shadow and Bone) has been cast in Season 3 of HBO’s The White Lotus. The Bulgarian actor will play a recurring Russian character, replacing Miloš Biković who had been originally cast in the role. The Serbian-Russian actor exited the project on Friday following criticism from Ukraine.

Season 3, slated to begin filming shortly in and around Koh Samui, Phuket, and Bangkok, will follow a new group of guests at another White Lotus property based in Thailand.

Previously announced Season 3 cast includes Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Francesca Corney, Nicholas Duvernay, Arnas Fedaravičius, Christian Friedel, Walton Goggins, Dom Hetrakul, Sarah Catherine Hook, Jason Isaacs, Michelle Monaghan, Sam Nivola, Morgana O’Reilly, Lek Patravadi, Shalini Peiris, Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Tayme Thapthimthong and Aimee Lou Wood as well returning Season 1 co-star Natasha Rothwell.

Created, written and directed by White, The White Lotus is executive produced by White, David Bernad and Mark Kamine. On the filming and promotion of the third installment, HBO has partnered with the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Over the past decade, Kostov has build a career in the UK, performing in English — as well as Spanish (Flack), Italian (Back), Polish (Wild Bill), Russian (Berlin Station, Treadstone) and Romanian (Temple).

Kostov is known for his recurring role as Fedyor Kaminsky, a Russian-inspired character, on Season 1 of Netflix’s fantasy series Shadow & Bone. He also stars as Russian villain Vladimir Makarov on the 2023 video game Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare III. In features, Kostov was recently seen in the reboot of superhero comedy horror film The Toxic Avenger.

He is the producer partner of fellow Bulgarian actor, Oscar-nominated Borat star Maria Bakalova, after the two struck up a friendship during the casting process in which Kostov assisted. The duo’s production company, Five Oceans, is finishing its first film, the Bulgarian Triumph, in which Kostov and Bakalova also star.

Kostov is repped by Industry Entertainment and Insight Management & Production in the UK.

The first season of The White Lotus, which was set in Hawaii, received 20 Emmy nominations across 13 categories and won 10 trophies, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series. The Sicily-set second installment, which premiered in December 2022, garnered 23 Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series, and won five.