The show is garnering the usual buzz that’s as much about the uber-rich and their jet-setting as the show’s unique formula, seasonal quirks and larger cultural resonance.
For the third year running, HBO’s “The White Lotus” is the talk of the town, garnering the usual buzz that’s as much about the uber-rich and their jet-setting as the show’s unique formula, seasonal quirks and larger cultural resonance.
Set in Thailand on the island of Koh Samui, the third season of “The White Lotus” follows in no particular order a family of five (the Ratliffs), a group of three girlfriends, a couple and a slew of others connected to the namesake hotel.
While they inevitably mix and mingle, all the parties staying at The White Lotus are dogged by problems of their own making that feed into larger themes and commentaries about the perilous lifestyles of the rich.
“The White Lotus” is just the latest in a string of Hollywood depictions of contemporary opulence in what’s become something of an obsession with so-called “wealth porn.”
“Part of what’s interesting about ‘The White Lotus’ is that it takes place at this luxury-style resort,” says Steve Granelli, an associate teaching professor of communication studies at Northeastern University. “Realizing that the barrier of entry is wealth, we [the viewers] then have access to a bunch of storylines that speak to all of the different ways people today cross that barrier and obtain that wealth.”
The show’s forward momentum is derived in part by the revelation in the first episode that someone has died. The series proceeds some time before the death, commencing with the guests arriving at the posh hotel, where they are greeted by hotel staff. Many of the staffers themselves feature prominently in the series, with their own intersecting plotlines.
Granelli describes the show as part murder mystery, part family drama — an inversion of the “whodunit” that doubles as a study of wealth, sex, power and luxury travel.
What accounts for the show’s success?
“The show has a lot going for it,” Granelli says. “It’s got the limited series-run appeal, so we’re not, as viewers, investing in something for an untold amount of time. We know it’s going to be six or seven episodes, wrapped up in a tiny bow.”
“We know there is going to be a reward for the folks watching from season to season: that is, there’s going to be one or two characters that are brought over,” he says. “But you don’t need to have watched any of the prior seasons to start watching.”
At its heart, Granelli says, the show is “a social class ‘dramady,’” but it’s also “a hotel show” that harkens back to John Cleese and Connie Booth’s 1975 sitcom, “Fawlty Towers.” (The first season of “The White Lotus” featured a hotel manager, played by Murray Bartlett, who bears a striking resemblance to Basil Fawlty.)
“I love British comedy, and there’s something about all the pieces of the hotel, the guests who are coming and going, and the interactions they have as they brush past each other — all of that mixed in with contemporary social class dynamics,” Granelli says.
The satirical bits are just part of a larger mixture. The show’s ambiance is another draw, which hits right from the get-go: seductive theme music accompanies elaborate paintings, tapestries and pictorial motifs in the opening credits. As an added perk, “The White Lotus” provides an after-show sit-down with the actors for a deep dive on the characters and themes.
Whether it’s shots of the elaborate vases based on Sicilian legend in season two, or the presence of monkeys, snakes and lizards native to Southeast Asia in season three, the series is shot through with interstitial symbolism. The effect is the feeling that there’s meaning to be found in almost every frame — that even the pattern in the wallpaper hints at some imminent disaster.
This, Granelli says, is all by design.
“As much as [director Mike White’s] is being very intentional about his interstitials, his cutaways, his framing, I think he knows that there are people watching who dive that deep, and who will try to make connections between the disparate imagery,” Granelli says. “I wouldn’t put it past him to include some red herrings, or to lead people down rabbit holes for the sake of it.”
“The White Lotus” franchise has garnered dozens of awards since its debut in 2021. Season 1, which starred Jennifer Coolidge, Murray Bartlett, Connie Britton and Sydney Sweeney, earned 10 Emmy Awards. Season 2, featuring, among others, Aubrey Plaza, Meghann Fahy, Theo James and Michael Imperioli, took home five Emmys.
White has “a wonderful eye for casting,” Granelli says. “He’s getting as many talented people as he can collected in the same space.”
“At this point, we trust the brand,” Granelli says. “We trust Mike White as a singular auteur who can write, cast and pick the right locale.”