Walton Goggins has taken on a new gig after his turn on The White Lotus — an audiobook with Jimmy John’s.
The sandwich company announced Wednesday that it will be releasing a two-part fantasy romance audiobook, The Blade and the Brine, with narration by Goggins. The audiobook is a part of the sandwich chain’s campaign for the Summer Menu of Ultimate Temptation (SMUT), which features new food items.
The word “smut” is also a popular slang term on TikTok that’s used to describe books with explicit, sexual content.
The audiobook is only available to Jimmy John's Freaky Fast Rewards members who’ve purchased any sandwich or wrap between June 23 and July 6, with the promo code “BEACHREAD.”
However, the rules for obtaining each part of the audiobook are more specific. Rewards members have to order from Jimmy John’s between June 23 and June 29 to get part one. If members want the second part, they have to order a sandwich or wrap from the chain between July 1 and July 6.
Both parts of the audiobook will be sent to the email addresses associated with customers’ Freaky Fast Rewards membership.
“The Blade and the Brine has everything you want in a beach read—drama, desire, a little danger,” Goggins said in a statement, via WMar 2 ABC. “Recording it got pretty steamy. Pair it with a Jimmy John’s sandwich and, well... things get hot, fast.”
According to USA Today, The Blade and the Brine follows Jimmy John’s delivery girl, Viola, as she’s destined to become Queen Mayo. In the first part of the audiobook, she meets one of her suitors, Lord Mayo, her protector, who quickly impresses her.
However, in part two, the dark and mysterious Lord Pickle catches her eye, and Viola has to choose between him and Lord Mayo.
The first part of the audiobook is about five minutes and 40 seconds long, while the second part is six minutes and 30 seconds long.
Some of the new menu items featured on Jimmy John’s S.M.U.T. menu include a #7 Spicy East Coast Italian — with salami, provolone cheese, and hot Jimmy peppers — and a Kickin’ Ranch Chicken Wrap, which has a special ranch sauce. The chain is also releasing a #17 Ultimate Porker, which has smoked ham and applewood smoked bacon, and a #12 Beach Club, featuring turkey breast and provolone cheese.
The Independent has contacted Jimmy John’s for comment.
Goggins’s audiobook comes after he became a fan favorite in season three of The White Lotus, which follows the explosive lives of guests at a luxury resort in Thailand. Goggins played Rick Hatchett, who went to the resort to confront the hotel owner, whom Rick believed killed his father. Rick was also on this vacation with his much younger partner, Chelsea, portrayed by Aimee Lou Wood.
After the season aired, there were rumors that Goggins and Woods were feuding, since he’d unfollowed her on Instagram. However, the pair officially addressed the speculated drama earlier this month, with Goggins telling Variety he unfollowed Wood after filming as a way of seeking closure after the emotional exertion of making the show.
He added that the White Lotus experience was particularly difficult because it brought back memories of his travels to Thailand after his first wife, Leanne Knight, died by suicide in 2004.
“My catharsis in this experience was different than other people’s, because of my history in this place. I knew what we had gone through, and I knew how close that we had gotten, and I needed to begin to process saying goodbye to Rick and Chelsea,” said Goggins, who reportedly started to cry. “And I knew that that was going to take a while for me, so I let her know, this is what I’ve gotta do. And she was extremely supportive about that.”
