By Velvet Winter
Contains spoilers
Photo: HBO
The White Lotus was supposed to be a one-season miniseries. Mike White's searing 2021 dramatic opera wasn't born of a deep desire to skewer oblivious rich people, but rather of the necessity to keep an HBO show in production during Covid-19.
"HBO came to me and was hoping I could come up with some idea that was Covid-friendly and in one location," White told Hollywood Reporter at the time.
By the grace of White's masterful writing and directing skills, the first season was a refreshing hit and it delighted audiences so much that The White Lotus was upgraded from miniseries to anthology.
Last season's foray to the sun-tinted shores of Sicily spread further out, but never quite reached the heights of its predecessor.
Now we're being welcomed back to The White Lotus: Thailand and to a whole host of new (and some old) characters being set up for karmic retribution. But if there's one take away from the third serving of rich people gone wild, it's that more doesn't always equal better.
But enough about dramatic ironies, let's meet our new guests.
First up, there's lifelong friends looking to reconnect: Austin-based housewife Kate (Leslie Bibb), divorced New York lawyer Laurie (Carrie Coon) and famous LA TV actor Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan). Anyone who has attempted to pull school friendships into adulthood will be cackling as these women split into factions and attack each other over long-held resentments.
Then we have our requisite family, led by money-hungry financier Timothy (Jason Isaac, sporting the most galling Southern accent, at odds with his incredibly British face) and drugged-up, clueless mum Victoria (Parker Posey, pulling off the accent much more successfully).
They've come to The White Lotus Thailand so their middle child Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook) can interview a monk at a local monastery for her college thesis. They've also brought along their other two kids, jabroni eldest son Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and youngest boy Lachlan, whose soul is being battled over by his uncouth brother and virtue-signalling sister.
The White Lotus. Photo: Supplied
Rounding out the guests is the age-gap couple: free-spirited Chelsea (a delightful Aimee Lou Wood) and Rick (Walton Goggins), her much older boyfriend who can't seem to bear the sound of Chelsea's voice.
These are the people who paid to be at The White Lotus (although, after two murders in two years, the chain must have one heck of a crisis PR team to keep getting people through the door). Revolving around them is a crew of local Thai workers, as well as a stray Russian and an Aussie to boot.
We're also welcoming back Natasha Rothwell as Belinda, the spa manager that got her hopes dashed by Jennifer Coolidge's Tanya in season one. She's at the Thai resort on a sort of employee-exchange program where she's also allowed to bring her adult son, Zion, to visit?
Zion's the one who first clocks the dead body that has become the signature opening of the White Lotus. It floats by as he's wading through the resort's water lily ponds to get back to his mother after multiple shots ring out across its placid grounds.
Herein lies the hook for the season - who's the floating body and will there be any more? Before we can find out, we have to get through a week of drugs, deception, drinking, debauchery and just so many people eating fresh fruit with a knife and fork.
On death and dying
The theme for this season, according to White, is death and Eastern religion - superficially nodded to through characters bent in prayer and the heightened spiritual prominence of the Thai setting. But this can sometimes be overwhelmed by more tawdry topics like incest and suicide.
Childhood mates Laurie (Carrie Coon), Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan) and Kate (Leslie Bibb) are the best of frenemies. Photo: Supplied
Technically, White Lotus season three is masterful. Cinematographer Ben Hutchins seems to have listened to early complaints about the colouration of the show, easing up on the garish yellow filter seen in early teasers. Instead, sinister close-ups of local wildlife and Koh Samui's churning sea reflect the queasy drama playing out behind the resort's closed doors.
The sound design is similarly inspired, ready to deploy the show's trademark sting to heighten the action. Music supervisor Gabe Hilfer has also stuffed the soundtrack with local pop songs that add another level to the show's immersion.
Likewise, most of the performances are delivered impeccably.
Schwarzenegger is the comedic spark of the season, putting his whole ass (literally) into embodying the overly confident, Andrew Tate-led "alpha male" that turns into a wounded puppy when told no.
London-born, Thailand-based actor Tayme Thapthimthong excels as cutie resort security guard Gaitok. He's one of the only characters to elicit sincere empathy, even as his head-in-the-clouds pursuit of concierge Mook (Lalisa Manobal, aka Blackpink's Lisa, nailing her first acting role) leads him to make questionable decisions.
But while embodied by competent actors, some characters and storylines hit the beats of predecessors too closely. Like Piper, who's in for a nasty shock as she discovers the daily discomfort the 99 per cent endure from atop her mountain of privilege. This is very reminiscent of what Sydney Sweeney's character finds in season one.
The White Lotus is at its best when confined to the bubbling pot of the resort - stray too far and you risk letting out the steam. This happens quickly as Rick jets off to Bangkok to settle a familial debt, leaving Chelsea to fend for herself back at the ranch.
After luxuriating in setting up characters, motivations and motives in the first four episodes, the action really only starts to ramp up in episode five and six. Unfortunately, episode seven and eight won't be released in advance, making us all wait until they are broadcast chronologically.
Considering the plunging cliff that episode six ends on, there is a chance Mike White will bring it all together in the last two episodes to create a finale as spectacular as the first season.
In fact, I'm praying for it.
This article was originally published by ABC
The White Lotus season three premieres on Monday 17 February on Neon.
