If there was a show that got everyone waiting anxiously for their sunday nights last year, it was the HBOmax´s hit, The White Lotus. With a catching plot, instinging characters and controversial themes, the series is going to make its comeback for a third season at least until the end of 2023.
Recap of the last two seasons and overall view
In an interview given by Mike White, creator of the show, to Variety, he stated: “The first season kind of highlighted money, and then the second season, sex”.White also told what to expect for season three. “I think the third season would be maybe a satirical and funny look at death and Eastern religion and spirituality. It feels like it could be a rich tapestry to do another round at White Lotus”.
The themes and the ways that White chooses to portrait the characters, are possibly what makes the show so successful.
In an article by Cult, The White Lotus was highlighted for being part of a new wave of heterotopian TVs Shows and movies, a concept by Michael Foucault that has been translated to the screens. Different from dystopias, heterotopias focuses on real atmospheres and constructed ambiences that resemble real life a little too much, causing discomforting feelings in those who watch from the outside, and even a sense of dislocation or emptiness.
In the show the concept is portrayed by the Resort, a place that only exists in the reality of a small group of super rich people, and that would not be real if it wasn’t for the delimitation between both worlds.
Where Will the Next The White Lotus Be Filmed?
What we know so far, is that the last seasons were previously set at the luxurious chain of Four Seasons Resorts, Hawaii and Italy, respectively, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change. According to Variety the next season will be placed in Thailand, at one of the four hotel giant properties, that could either be: Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui or the Golden Triangle.
The country, known for its tourism, it’s home to an immense variety of beautiful landscapes and biodiversity, very promising, so there’s a lot of possibilities as to what we are going to get, maybe another season by the beach, or a new setup by the countryside. Thailand is also a very religious country, where most of its population are buddhists, which falls into the eastern religion and spirituality category that White seems to want to approach.
What’s new for The White Lotus Cast and could there be comebacks?
As we have seen so far, in each season The White Lotus brings an almost whole new cast of characters, with a few exceptions. After the tragic ending of the fan favorite, Jennifer Coolidge (Tanya) , who was one of the few characters who made an appearance in both seasons, fans started to speculate if by any chance there could be a return from one of the last seasons members of the show, and that might be happening.
According to insiders who told Variety, Rothwell (Belinda), the spa manager that helped the guest Tanya McQuoid during her spiritual healing journey, it’s going to make a comeback. It’s important to remember that Rothwell´s role in the show earned her a nomination for best supporting actress at the Emmys.
In the first season, Belinda and Tanya became very close, and the billionaire heiress even promised her an investment in Belinda´s own healing spa, but the deal fell through, that storyline could also be explored considering what White said about focusing on the trope.
As for new members, Evan Peters and Hayeden Panettiere, both expressed their wishes to join the cast. The American Horror Story star was even supposedly considered to play Ethan in season two, so if we are lucky enough maybe we will get to see them on the screens.
The season two star Michael Imperioli also made notes stating that he would be down for a comeback. “I don’t want to think about it too much.. “Because the idea of that makes me so happy. I don’t want to be disappointed…I would want nothing more than that. I just loved working with Mike so much.”, he said to Esquire.
It’s fun to think about the endless possibilities that there could be with the show, and at the end, all that’s left for us to do is wait anxiously for what White it’s going to surprise us with.