Cliff Notes – What we know about The White Lotus season 4 as creator teases location
- HBO has officially renewed The White Lotus for a fourth season, following the successful third season which garnered 6.2 million viewers for its finale.
- Creator Mike White has hinted at a new location for season four, moving away from the oceanic settings of previous seasons, with potential scouting in Europe.
What we know about The White Lotus season 4 as creator teases location
As fans reel from The White Lotus’ jaw-dropping finale, we’re already impatiently waiting for season four.
The HBO show from creator Mike White is as popular as ever, peaking at an incredible 6.2 million viewers for the final episode of the third season as viewers tuned in to see who would fall victim to the luxury resort’s fatal curse.
And we’ll certainly miss the star-studded cast featuring the likes of Carrie Coon, Parker Posey, Walton Goggins, Aimee Lou Wood, Blackpink’s Lisa and Patrick Schwarzenegger.
But all good things must come to an end and we’re in for another long wait before new episodes drop – with plenty of mystery over what direction the next season will take.
And enough surviving resort members with loose ends to open the door to returning characters.
So, as you start your White Lotus rewatch from the start, here’s everything we know so far about the fourth season.
Will there be a fourth season of The White Lotus?
Yes, HBO greenlit a fourth season in January 2025, ahead of the season three premiere.
Season three was an undeniable hit and a renewal has already been confirmed (Picture: HBO)
The show has already scooped up 15 Emmys across the first two seasons, including outstanding limited series. And the acclaimed series is anticipated to build on this count after such a widely-praised third run.
There will be one major change in the new season after the award-winning composer Cristóbal Tapia de Veer announced he has quit after his ‘last fight’ with Mike over the lack of ‘ooh-loo-loo-loos’ in the theme song this season, per New York Times.
Where is The White Lotus season four set?
Mike has teased that there will be a switch up for the new season, straying away from the turbulent ocean that has been such a defining feature of the previous seasons set in Hawaii, Sicily and Thailand.
So far the show has been set in Hawaii, Sicily and Thailand (Picture: HBO)
‘For the fourth season, I want to get a little bit out of the crashing waves of rocks vernacular but there’s always more room for more murders at the White Lotus hotels,’ he said.
Earlier this year, HBO drama chief, Francesca Orsi, shed further light on the location hunt.
‘We’re going on some locations scouting in the next couple of weeks, so we’ll know soon. I can’t really say where we’re going to land but chances are somewhere in Europe,’ she told Deadline.
The creator has previously shared his ambition to do a season of White Lotus on every continent.
At the Sydney Vivid Festival in 2023, he explained: ‘My dream would be to hit every continent, so yeah, this is like its own continent basically.
Emmy-winning creator Mike White is not revealing much- but is ready to leave the crashing waves behind (Picture: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
‘We kind of have to come to Australia if we keep going. It would be so fun. Obviously, there’s a huge wealth of talent here and the beauty is inarguable, so it feels like it checks all the boxes.’
Then, his producing partner David Bernad told The Guardian in 2023 that Mike ‘doesn’t like the cold’.
He added: ‘I feel confident we will never do a season in the cold… Mike is not for it. He is a California guy. He is not built for the cold. Never say never, but I would be surprised.’
We may well stay in a sunny locale, although scouting will fully get underway this summer.
So far, The Four Seasons chain has been doubling as The White Lotus resorts and there are plenty to pick from in Europe including the French Riveria, Lisbon, Paris, Prague and Budapest.
When will it be released?
There is currently no release date for The White Lotus season four.
The show had a small gap between the first two seasons, airing in July 2021 followed by October 2022.
Unfortunately, the third season was hit with delays in 2023 due to the Hollywood strikes, meaning there was a two-and-half-year wait before season three hit our screens in February.
Barring any unexpected curveballs, we will likely see season four air at the end of 2026 or the start of 2027.
Who is in the cast?
There is no confirmed cast for the upcoming season but there is plenty of strong speculation over who could be checking in next season.
Plenty of characters could return including Belinda and Greg/Gary (Picture: HBO)
Of course, Greg/Gary, played by Jon Gries, could return after surviving yet another season.
And, in a similar vein, Natasha’s character Belinda may also make another cameo after she (and her business major son Zion) secured $5 million from Greg to ensure she keeps the secret that he murdered his ex-wife Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge).
‘Jon is like the barnacle of The White Lotus ship, he stays around,’ Natasha joked. And Walton agreed: ‘Obviously Jon. It feels like Jon is going to be in every season. Sorry if I gave that away.’
Jon, however, is less optimistic. ‘So, there’s no trying to predict anything Mike White does. Yes, I would love to come back. But does the book on Greg seem like it’s complete? I can’t tell you,’ he ominously posed, per Hollywood Reporter.
This season’s star Leslie Bibb who played Republican-leaning friend Kate has also expressed interest in returning, and even bringing along a fan-favourite from seasons past – Daphne (played by Meghann Fahy).
‘I feel like she could come back on another girls’ trip with a different group of girls. And I feel like in that group of girls could even be Daphne from season two. Meghann [Fahy’s] character. That could be cool,’ she said.
The Ratliff family all escape with their lives – could one of them return? (Picture: HBO)
There’s definitely a chance that any or all of them come make a comeback considering Patrick has heard tell of an all-stars season, which Mike himself has said he ‘would love’ to do.
And finally, fans are hopeful that Parker’s character Victoria Ratliff could return in the fallout of her financial ruin thanks to her husband’s fraudulent activity coming back to haunt him.
In post-finale interview, Mike said: ‘I don’t think Victoria is someone who can live in poverty. I’m sure she can find some other solution.’
As for entirely new cast members, it is anyone’s guess but it is stiff competition, as Francesca told Hollywood Reporter: ‘ I was on a girls trip with a few actresses, and it was so awkward. I love them as people and as friends, but everybody’s vying to be in that show.’
But people are already putting in their favourites.
One name regularly cropping up is Desperate Housewives star Marcia Cross as well as Friends icon Lisa Kudrow, Glee actor Dianna Agron and Agatha All Along’s Kathryn Hahn (ideally as the ‘lesbian hotel manager’).
What happened in The White Lotus season 3 finale?
Timothy Ratliff’s week-long nervous breakdown over his family’s financial ruin came to a head as he attempted to poison them all except Lochlan with the seeds of the suicide fruit before changing his mind last minute.
Unfortunately, Lochlan consumes some of the seeds the next morning but luckily escapes death by the skin of his teeth.
The three friends – Kate, Laurie and Jaclyn – make amends after a tense few days and their bond is further solidified when they accidentally get caught up in the shooting at the end of the episode.
When Rick arrives back from Bangkok, the man he presumes is his father’s murderer (and the owner of the hotel), Jim Hollinger, is hot on his heels and antagonises him.
In the end, Rick snatches Jim’s gun and shoots him, discovering that Jim was his father all along.
As the bodyguards retaliate, Chelsea gets caught up in the crossfire and her dead body is scooped up by Rick who is eventually shot down by Gaitok.
Finally, Belinda strikes a deal with Greg and happily zooms away $5 million richer, leaving behind a broken-hearted Pornchai.
The White Lotus is available to stream on Now and Sky in the UK.
