Whether you’ve watched The White Lotus or not, you have likely heard of it based on the amount of media buzz and awards surrounding the show. I personally think that The White Lotus is a unique and refreshing show. However, be warned that if you haven’t seen the show, this article will contain a few spoilers.
In my opinion, season one’s casting of The White Lotus is what makes the show so amazing. The cast is star-studded, featuring Jennifer Coolidge, Sydney Sweeney, Alexandra Daddario, Steve Zahn and many more Hollywood big names. The dynamics between characters work so well to create an enthralling show. Each character fits into a stereotypical character trope.
Alexandra Daddario and Jake Lacy are a newlywed couple on their honeymoon from hell. Daddario plays Rachel, a journalist struggling to navigate the transition from facing financial hardship in her career to being married to a wealthy man. Lacy plays Shane, a Cornell grad who works for his wealthy parents’ real estate business. Throughout season one, Shane urges Rachel to quit her job. Shane is definitely a “mama’s boy,” which becomes apparent when his mother surprises him on the honeymoon because Shane was so “upset” about having to stay in a different suite than the one his mother booked.
Jennifer Coolidge makes the show. Coolidge plays Tanya McQuoid, a woman feeling lost and lonely in life who is in Hawaii to spread her mother’s ashes in the ocean. Tanya quickly takes a strong liking to Belinda, the spa manager. They end up forming a close relationship and Tanya forms an attachment to Belinda. Tanya and her unfiltered facial expressions and hilarious comments are a great addition to the plot.
Steve Zahn, Connie Britton, Sydney Sweeney and Fred Hechinger play the average wealthy family. Sweeney, who plays Olivia, their daughter, has a mysterious and uninterested nature throughout the season. Hechinger, who plays Olivia’s younger brother, Quinn, is an iPad kid at the beginning of the season. He doesn’t go anywhere without his phone, iPad and Nintendo. Zahn and Britton, or Mark and Nicole, are distant and distracted married parents. When Mark has a health scare, he ends up viewing life in a positive, optimistic light. Their stay at the White Lotus resort ends up bringing them closer together in unexpected ways.
The show is exactly what genre it says it is — a comedy-drama. There is an undertone of sarcasm and dry humor throughout season one. Despite the undeniable comedic gold that the show is, it is extremely dramatic and suspenseful at times, even turning fatal. A major plotline of the season revolves around a conflict between the hotel manager, Armond and Shane. Armond accidentally double-books the biggest suite in the hotel, the pineapple suite. Shane, who is quite entitled, cannot let go of the fact that he and Rachel are not staying in the pineapple suite. This conflict stretches across all six episodes of season one. Rachel ends up having enough of Shane’s entitled behavior in relation to the suite.
Season two of The White Lotus premiered on Oct. 30. New episodes are released every Sunday at 9 p.m. EST on HBO Max.
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