13 Years Later, HBO's 2-Part Comedy Starring Laura Dern Is Even More Relevant

Published Sep 20, 2026, 1:00 PM EDT Ben Sherlock is a Tomatometer-approved film and TV critic who runs the massively underrated YouTube channel I Got Touched at the Cinema. Before working at Screen Rant, Ben wrote for Game Rant, Taste of Cinema, Comic Book Resources, and BabbleTop. He's also an indie filmmaker, a standup comedian, and an alumnus of the School of Rock. Right now, Mike White is one of HBO’s most prized creators. He initially conceived The White Lotus as a limited series, but it proved to be so overwhelmingly popular that they turned it into a series series and renewed it for season 2. The show has only gotten more popular in its subsequent seasons, so HBO will keep sending White back to that resort chain for as many times as he’s willing to go. By any metric, The White Lotus is a bona fide hit. It’s been refreshing to see audiences around the world embrace White’s latest HBO dramedy, because it was so frustrating to see them ignore the last one. The last time White created a show for HBO, it was a much steeper uphill struggle. In 2011, White and Laura Dern co-created a series called Enlightened, starring Dern as a middle-aged corporate employee who returns to work after having a very public meltdown at the office and spending two months at a holistic treatment center. As she tries to stay zen and do the right thing and mend all the bridges she burned when she had a nervous breakdown at work, Amy keeps coming up against fresh obstacles and conflicts, testing her newfound inner peace. The series is beautifully bittersweet; it’s heartening to see Amy trying to put her life back together, but painfully relatable to see just how futile it is. HBO cancelled Enlightened after just two seasons, but now, more than 13 years after it went off the air, it’s only gotten more relevant. Enlightened is all about self-help and wellness and spirituality and prioritizing mental health, which were all in their infancy when the series aired, but have become a lot more culturally prevalent since then. Enlightened is the perfect companion piece to White Lotus. An Enlightened Reunion Is Coming To HBO Soon Via MovieStillsDB Despite universal critical acclaim, not to mention having one of the stars of Jurassic Park in the lead role, Enlightened struggled in the ratings. HBO, to their credit, gave it a second season to try to grow its audience, but it never found a big enough fan base. Enlightened never got a third season, or even a movie to wrap things up (a compromise HBO has made in the past), and we never got to see the delightfully self-destructive Amy Jellicoe ever again. However, we are about to get an Enlightened reunion, because Laura Dern is reteaming with Mike White on White Lotus season 4. Dern had an uncredited voice cameo in season 2, playing Michael Imperioli’s infuriated wife over the phone, but she’s getting a proper starring role in the new season. Dern’s character was originally set to be played by Helena Bonham Carter, who even shot a few days at the beginning of production. But, for whatever reason, it wasn’t really working out. Bonham Carter left the series, her role had to be recast at the last minute, and White turned to one of his most reliable collaborators to make it happen. The fact that this character wasn’t supposed to be played by Dern quashes any fan theory that this season will be an Enlightened crossover with an older Amy Jellicoe staying at the White Lotus. But even just the prospect of Laura Dern playing a major role in another Mike White project, sinking her teeth into the razor-sharp wit of his dialogue and the messiness of his characters’ lives and the eccentricity of their personalities, is enough to make White Lotus season 4 more exciting than it already was. I’d love to see Enlightened season 3, even after all this time, but this’ll be a nice substitute.