The White Lotus Star Aimee Lou Wood’s Teeth Are Real, and This Is Not The First Time She Has Addressed It

The British actress, who also starred in Netflix’s ‘Sex Education,’ has opened up about how her look has impacted her Hollywood career

As a breakout star of The White Lotus season 3, Aimee Lou Wood is making waves for both her performance as Chelsea and her unique look.

The British actress, who previously starred in the Netflix series Sex Education, has opened up about how her distinct teeth have impacted her throughout her life. When it came to her career, Wood, 30, has said she was always “shocked” when she got callbacks for television roles.

“I’d always be super confident when I went to theatre auditions but if it was a TV thing I’d be so shocked when I got a recall,” she told Stylist in 2020.

She began to feel empowered when fellow Brit Georgia May Jagger, who has become known for her unique smile, became the face of Rimmel London in 2009. “All of a sudden it went from me being goofy to, ‘Oh, you’re a bit of a model, aren’t you?’ So I want to thank Georgia May Jagger for representing the buck teeth,” said Wood.

From the reactions of The White Lotus fans to not being able to play certain roles, here’s everything Aimee Lou Wood has said about her teeth.

She says she could never play an American because of her teeth

In an interview with On Demand Entertainment in February 2025, Wood said she thinks her teeth would prevent her from being able to convincingly play an American.

“It’s the teeth. Like, no Americans have my teeth,” she said. “They just don’t. I’d have to get veneers. Because … I think that genuinely is like one of the things.”

The actress recalled an interaction from when she was portraying an American role in a play in Chicago. “This guy after in the bar was like … he was talking to me, and I I spoke to him, and I spoke like this, and he went, ‘I knew it. I knew it,'” she said.

Wood continued, “Cause he was like, ‘Your accent was great, but I knew you weren’t American. You just don’t look American’.”

She feels “rebellious” for not having veneers

Working with an American cast on The White Lotus was intimidating at first, Wood told The Hollywood Reporter in March 2025.

“These people live in Holly­wood,” she said. “I live in my little flat in South East London, and I’m so British in my sensibility that I wasn’t sure how to handle being around so many people who are so front-footed and confident.”

She continued, “All I ever do is take the piss out of myself. Even the way [White Lotus fans] are talking about me and my teeth — that I don’t have veneers or Botox — it feels a bit rebellious.”

She says her teeth have affected her confidence

In an interview with Stylist in 2020, Wood said that her that feeling like she’s not “conventional-looking enough” for certain roles is “a mental barrier I’ve had to overcome.”

“It’s completely in my head. It’s a myth I’ve told myself,” she explained.

Wood went on to recall, “I’d always be super confident when I went to theatre auditions but if it was a TV thing I’d be so shocked when I got a recall. I sometimes thought, ‘Oh, a Channel 4 thing, I might have a chance on there.’ Then ‘Sex Education’ came along and I was like, ‘Well, what have I seen on Netflix? Everyone has perfect Hollywood teeth’.”

After landing the Netflix role, however, Wood said she has received “hundreds of messages” from fans. “People going, ‘Oh my god, you’ve got teeth like mine,” she said. “Now I go to school and people think I’m cool because I look like Aimee.’ Instead of it being ‘Bugs Bunny’ or whatever.”

She’s opened up about her journey to self-acceptance

In a March 2025 makeup routine video using Merit Beauty products, Wood shared that growing up, her mouth “was the thing that everyone pointed out and it was the thing that made me different.” However, seeing others with a similar look helped her learn to accept herself.

“And I’ve never seen an actress on TV with teeth like mine,” she continued. “When Georgia Jagger did the ‘Get the London Look’ and she had the gap teeth, that was a huge moment. I then thought, I am going to put red lipstick on and I am going to draw attention to it.”