Everything you need to know about White Lotus season 3
Murder's apparently good for business, because The White Lotus is coming back for a third season under the sweltering Thailand sun, following on from the show's second run in the sunny climes of Sicily.
There'll be a fresh batch of uber-rich faces to check into the franchised luxury hotel – including the likes of Jason Isaacs, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Blackpink singer Lisa.
Grab a pi?a colada and some mace as Digital Spy breaks down everything you need to know about The White Lotus season three.
When will The White Lotus season 3 release?
After production delays amid the labour disputes in Hollywood last year, the new season of The White Lotus was pushed back to 2025.
While that might seem like it's a long time coming, things are at least now moving forward. The show's official Instagram account announced that production started in February, with a post captioned: "Unforgettable experiences are in the making at The White Lotus. We are eager to welcome new guests to our resort in Thailand."
The silver lining to the long wait is that show creator and writer Mike White has promised the next season of the show will be "supersized".
"It's going to be longer, bigger, crazier. I don't know what people will think, but I am super excited, so at least for my own barometer, that's a good thing," he told Entertainment Weekly.
Who will be back in the cast for The White Lotus season 3?
A raft of new cast members have been announced for season three, including Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter), Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education), Carrie Coon (The Gilded Age), Parker Posey (Lost in Space), Patrick Schwarzenegger (Gen V), and Blackpink singer Lisa.
Also confirmed to be involved in the next season are:
Francesca Corney
Nicholas Duvernay
Arnas Fedaravi?ius
Leslie Bibb
Dom Hetrakul
Michelle Monaghan
Tayme Thapthimthong
Christian Friedel
Morgana O'Reilly
Lek Patravadi
Shalini Peiris
In April, it was reported by Variety that Natasha Rothwell is to return as world-weary spa worker Belinda, who connected with Jennifer Coolidge's grieving character at the Hawaiian luxury hotel – to her detriment.
Rothwell recently revealed she'd already read the scripts for season three, telling fans to "buckle up" ahead of the new episodes.
"I gasped out loud a minimum of five times and this was just me reading them. The scripts are a testament to Mike [White]'s skill and ability to tell the most smart and entertaining stories," she told Vanity Fair.
"I mean, everything that he does is like a lesson to me as an actor and a performer. And as a writer myself, he takes folks on a journey. Everyone needs to buckle up, because it's going to get real!"
Now that Tanya's floated out of our lives, does that mean Jennifer Coolidge is out of the show for good, or could she return in a new role?
Speaking to Deadline, creator Mike White said: "Jennifer is my friend and everybody loved her in the first season, and I was like: 'I can't go to Italy without Jennifer.' And maybe that's still the case. Like, maybe you can't go to Japan without Jennifer, either."
However, Coolidge herself seems a little less optimistic about returning.
"When they kill you, you have to accept it. Because it means they're not calling for your costume sizes or anything. It's over! I have to get another thing," she said during an interview on Today.
"I have to make another thing happen, I guess. But am I sad? I just want to say in all honesty, I'm very sad I'm not in it."
The American Pie star went on to tease: "I think [season three] is going to be good. There's going to be all sorts of good stuff in it, probably great sex stuff. You know how Mike White writes – it's never, never a dull moment."
So it seems Tanya's return is probably off the cards – *sobs* – but will we see any more surprise casting in the third season?
Technically, anyone who survives the first two seasons could reappear, given that all these different chapters are set in the same universe. Also, Greg could certainly make a comeback in the wake of his wife's death.
Connie Britton could very likely pop up in a long-gestating role. She told Deadline in July 2022: "[Mike] wanted me to be in the second season, and there was an idea that I loved for the character. Our intention is to do it in the third season."
We'll just have to wait and see if there will be any additional surprise guests checking into the next White Lotus...
What will happen in The White Lotus season 3?
Season one took us to Hawaii and season two upped the ante with a getaway in Sicily. So, what location could be fitting for season three?
After plenty of speculation that the third season would be Asia-bound, a report from Variety confirmed the production is heading to Thailand.
Seasons one and two were shot at Four Seasons resorts in Hawaii and Italy, respectively. So, if the series' crew does the same for the third season, there are four outposts of the luxury hotelier in Thailand.
They're located in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and the Golden Triangle — providing a spread of terrain from the city, country, jungle and beach to choose from.
During a behind-the-scenes HBO clip to wrap up the second season, White hinted the next instalment would focus on "death and Eastern religion and spirituality".
"The first season kind of highlighted money, and then the second season is sex," White said. "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."
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, White teased something extra when he revealed what season two was going to look like before Sicily took precedence: "Originally, it was more of like a Bilderberg conference, more about getting into some of the bigger power dynamics there. But Sicily was a totally different vibe than the idea I pitched. That didn't seem right."
That means we could see some international leaders from across America and Europe get down with their freaky selves at a new White Lotus resort in season three.
Another tease we've had for season three is what we can expect from the show's infamous theme tune. For the third season, composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer has said that the theme will be inspired by... TikTok cats?!
Speaking to Variety, he said: "I hear interesting things in TikTok or YouTube sometimes. I think that the best song I heard in the last few years that I can remember is people harmonising to a cat on TikTok.
"There's a cat, and somebody put some piano and then some girls started harmonising, and then there's all these versions harmonising this cat, it's super moving and so spontaneous and fresh that this is grabbing a lot more my attention than super-produced pop music."
Is there a trailer for The White Lotus season 3?
We have had our very first glimpse at season three footage, in the form of an HBO teaser trailer for upcoming shows from its streaming service Max (which also revealed some clips from The Last of Us season 2).
This gave us a first look at Natasha Rothwell's returning character Belinda, as she entered the lobby of a new White Lotus resort in Thailand.
With the release date set for 2025, we'll have to wait until closer to the time before we get an extended trailer for the new season.
The White Lotus airs on HBO Max in the US, and on Sky Atlantic, Sky Go and NOW in the UK.
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