The White Lotus and The Paper star Sabrina Impacciatore played a huge role in the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony—but reactions were decisively mixed.
While popular in her homeland Italy, Impacciatore, 57, was widely unknown prior to her role as Valentina in season 2 of The White Lotus: a role that earned her an Emmy nomination. Since then, she's become beloved all around the world, even bagging a role The Office spin-off sitcom The Paper.
However, viewers around the world didn't really know what to make of her performance at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games.
The performance began with an animated sequence showing what appears to be Impacciatore essentially skiing and skating through the Winter Olympic Games and cites of bygone years.
This animated sequence then gave way to an energetic, physical dance routine that took viewers on a journey through time, starting in the 1920s and going right up until the present day.
How exactly did viewers react?
Some viewers criticized the animated sequence specifically. "Apparently Olympic brand guidelines don't apply to AI slop," one user wrote, sharing screenshots of the sequence which could be perceived as a guideline violation.
The logo is known within the media industry for having strict rules around use, republication, and modification.
A second added: "Trivializing the entire creativity and investment of the opening ceremony with one of the ugliest AI 'montages' I've ever seen on the global stage."
A third user quoted a post that decried the "dreadful" AI sequence, adding: "What no one is mentioning is that’s supposed to be actress Sabrina Impacciatore."
"What’s most disappointing about this AI intro animation is how unnecessary it was," wrote @jwordfish. "Sabrina Impacciatore’s nearly 15-minute dance performance combined hip-hop, clowning, and modern—proving at age 57 she needs no computers to delight the entire world."
Not everyone was negative
AI aside, the dance itself had slightly better reactions. Many praised the Italian actress for a solid performance that highlighted the country's culture.
While there was still a fair share of jokes, with a fourth user comparing her outfit to the Yellow Power Ranger, a fifth dubbed the actress a "national treasure."
It seems that the Italians were especially entranced by Impaccitore's performance. A fifth post is translated as saying: "SABRINA IMPACCIATORE YOU ARE EVERYTHING."
Sharing a series of photos from the dance, a sixth chimed with an X post in Italian. The post roughly translates as saying: "This moment with Sabrina Impacciatore is about to go down in history."
And a seventh simply shared an image of Impacciatore's back and said: "When I am 58, I want to look like Sabrina Impacciatore."
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