Haley Lu Richardson has a casual, funny appeal that makes her seem good. The actress exudes laughter despite the intense September heat as she poses for a PEOPLE photo shoot in Malibu, taking bites off of pineapple and dragon fruit. She laughs and removes her Akila sunglasses to say, “Organic deodorant doesn’t work—it makes you sweat more.” “My shirt has a foot odor.”
Shortly after, the 28-year-old Richardson walks in sporting a new hairstyle, flinging back her golden-brown locks and cocking her head to the side as she studies her reflection in a large oak mirror. “I have less hair upfront. “Do you think I’m going bald?,” she teases her group. She trips over her vintage outfit as a camera approaches. She yells, “Free the nipple, baby!” and swiftly pulls her gown back up.
Richardson’s character from White Lotus season 2, Portia, a quasi-nihilistic Gen Z assistant compelled to go on vacation with her codependent boss Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge), is frequently likened to her. Portia, dressed in outrageously mismatched costumes that went viral, frolics around an Italian resort, searching for meaning in life. However, Richardson has been going through a different type of metamorphosis lately.
She opened up to her 2.2 million Instagram followers in July, sharing that she was going through a trying moment. “I was going through a really deep heartbreak and allowing myself to feel how scary and unknown that was,” she explains. Richardson says he has no regrets about posting, but he fails to elaborate.
I doubt that I could ever simply allow myself to feel such emotions without making such a strong effort to suppress them. A lot, that is. I gave in to my grief. And I just felt like I had to admit that I wasn’t really doing all that well. The effect that had was so strong that I felt instantly less alone. Perhaps because I simply felt what I was feeling at the time and hadn’t allowed myself to experience it when I’d felt lost, depressed, or alone in the past.
After receiving close to 200,000 likes on the post, Richardson felt a strong connection and comfort from her followers. It may seem ridiculous that an Instagram post could have such a profound impact on me, but I got the impression that people were being frank and sharing a common emotion. We all experience these difficult times, and it is from this shared experience that compassion arises. It seemed like everyone was hugging me.
She draws in a long breath. Many people are unaware of the actress’s other side beyond her eccentric on-screen character. Her sense of humor serves as a shield, but in recent years, as a result of therapy and changes in her life, she has begun to open up about her feelings.
There were earlier instances of Richardson displaying vulnerability than in that Instagram post. She revealed on her Instagram Story in November of last year that she and her former fiancé, Jane the Virgin alum Brett Dier, had discreetly split up two years earlier, having spent more than seven years together. In March 2019, she had previously disclosed on Busy Tonight that she asked Dier to marry her when they were having pizza in a strip mall, and he accepted. They decided it was time to come clean after rumors about their connection persisted in the media.
It was challenging, but I overcame it; that’s what counts. My connection lasted a very long time. Withholding tears, she explains, “I spent a lot of life with someone, and that was very special.” “It wasn’t as long as I had assumed it would be. Throughout our entire relationship, I had believed that my life would end abruptly if it wasn’t going to be forever.
Richardson admires her courage three years after their breakup. “It’s been an incredible experience to learn the perspective of time and be able to say, ‘Wow, I made it through that, and I can handle something similar, and I can stand alone.'”
The quality that really distinguishes Richardson from her fellow Hollywood actresses is her capacity to accept her emotions and be authentic. Her self-awareness is largely attributed to her therapy. “I should have started much, much earlier. I’ve been in therapy for six or seven years now,” she claims.
It becomes a part of your life once you give it a try and realize how positively it affects every single element of your life. She stops. She quips, “Hopefully this doesn’t come across as a TED Talk on therapy and emotional growth.”
Richardson was born in Phoenix, Arizona, to graphic designer mom Valerie and golf course architect dad Forrest. At the age of three, Richardson started tap and jazz classes. She had started taking part in local dancing competitions in her high school years. “I learned how to maintain myself occupied and entertained” as an only child, the woman claims. “I was and still am a ham.”
She eventually landed a TV job as a backup dancer on Bella Thorne and Zendaya’s Disney sitcom Shake It Up after moving to Los Angeles with her mother when she was sixteen.
I was so certain of what I wanted, but there was really no reason for me to be so certain of myself, so it was crazy, she adds. “I simply got a strong sense that dance and acting were what I should be doing. To be honest, all I was was a dreaming girl.
Richardson feels most herself when she’s moving, whether it’s dancing in her underwear in her living room or instructing 80-year-olds in choreography in a weekly class. This is despite the fact that she is most known for her work as an actor. She has released a number of heartfelt dance videos with her fans over the past year, which she describes as her weaknesses being exposed.
“Because I feel things so deeply, dance has been a huge grounding thing for me,” she explains. “Being able to connect your body with the emotions that I feel is really cathartic.”
Richardson is gaining the ability to tolerate her insecurities as she makes her way into the field. Feeling her thighs, she settles into a chair and murmurs, “Do I have cellulite?” “Yes, I do,” She had low self-esteem as a child, as do many young women, particularly because she spent 40 hours a week dancing in a leotard and scrutinizing her shape in the mirror.
She admits, “I definitely did have some body dysmorphia.” I’m still not over it. However, I was also really fortunate to have amazing dance pals as a child, who gave me a sense of security. Since then, she’s discovered how to be at ease with her own skin. “It’s imperative that I recognize when and where to maintain realism and accept things as they are, rather than how we wish they could be,” she says. “That also applies to my self-perception.”
It makes sense that her quest for self-acceptance aided in the realization of a long-held goal. She sobs and continues, “This is really embarrassing to say, but it’s sincere.” “I became an actor in part because I thought I might one day become well-known enough to meet the Jonas Brothers.”
Not only has she now met Kevin, Joe, and Nick, but the brothers also made Richardson the star of their dance-focused music video for “Wings,” the lead song from their most recent album, The Album, earlier this year. In the video, Richardson dances in a hotel suite with pals and even gives a blindfolded kiss to a cardboard cutout of Nick. Since she was a teenager, she has been a fan of the band.
Regarding the gig, she remarks, “Those kinds of dreams don’t come true, but it did for me.” And I’m not blind to it. I’m incredibly appreciative. It was the most amazing thing.
During this interview, she gets a surprise when she sees a Jonas Brothers video.
“Hey Haley, how are you? Joe says, “It’s us,” in the video. You have a question for us. On an isolated island, you find yourself stuck. Only one Jonas Brothers album may be brought. Which record is going to be that?
She plays back the video and says, “I want to hear people say my name one more time.”
“I’ve actually thought regarding this a lot, believe it or not,” she responds. They genuinely stand for such significant moments in my life. Really, though, maybe just the Jonas Brothers record. or Just A Little Lengthier. Those two, I believe, are the closest and most precious to my heart. Starry-eyed, she reflects.
She laughs, “I think they’re scared of me because I’m such a fan, but I really want to be their friend now.” “I truly want them to know that if they’d like it, I feel like I’m ready to be their friend. I believe it is possible.
Later in the day, Richardson looks out at the water from the beachside home that she uses as a makeshift dressing room.
“I experience shame frequently due to my heightened sensitivity, intensity of feeling, and ability to overwhelm others with my happy moments, or when it becomes too much for a friend to hear about Haley going through a difficult period again,” she says, glancing at the tattoo of her father’s handwriting, “A Life That’s Good,” on her forearm. “But for some reason, I feel like I’m regaining control because of the liberation and release provided by this thundering waterfall. That’s a trait of mine I like.
Truly, Richardson has a lot to appreciate about him. Darbin, her longhair cat who frequently appears on her Instagram, goes with her when she takes showers. Before turning in early, she watches dating shows and crochets. And her personal dating experiences? She says, “I’d love to share my life with someone.”
But having learned a lot in the last several years, she also knows what she wants in a partner: someone who selects her and feels cherished for choosing her. “Every time, no matter what,” she continues. “I suppose that’s love for someone else.” She’s not searching for dull, mind you. I mean, I adore cheese, dancing, and acting. It seems like something that is naturally reassuring, motivating, and correct. as in cheese.
Renowned Los Angeles-based choreographer Galen Hooks, who has worked with Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Ciara, and Camila Cabello, welcomes Richardson as she sways toward the outdoor area ready to record a dance piece. Hooks offers to help the actress practice a 45-degree jump for the shoot. Richardson, wearing an ultra-sheer Christopher Esber lace blouse and matching tulle-panel maxi skirt, tosses her head back, twists on her toe, and raises her leg well above her head. Regarding the striking pose, she remarks, “This is a good representation of me.” “It has strength.”
Richardson’s years of dancing training are evident when the shoot ends in the surf, as she jumps around carefree to Olivia Rodrigo’s “Bad Idea Right?” The waves beat, her radiant face being cleansed of the foundation and candy-glaze rouge lipstick with every rhythmic crash. She leaps out of the cool blue water, her head clear of all cares, her bare feet solid beneath her. She appears to be more authentic than before.