The theme to the second season of HBO's The White Lotus was such a banger that it even got an EDM remix from trance titan Tiësto - albeit one that didn’t improve on the original in any way whatsoever. So, when fans spotted that it was missing from the currently-in-progress third season, there was a predictable amount of social media uproar.
We’re not quite sure why people were so surprised - the season two theme replaced the one from season one, after all - but Gabe Hilfer, the show’s music supervisor, has now explained the thinking behind the switch-up in an interview with Rolling Stone.
“The song changes every season, and it reflects the tone, mood, and the themes of the season,” he confirms. “The theme songs for the first two seasons were a little bit more related creatively, but they’re totally different songs. Season three is about spirituality, and it’s meant to be reflective of that. I think that people are just noticing it more because it’s considerably different than last season.”
Of the ‘controversy’ surrounding the new theme, Hilfer says: “Last season’s theme song was so beloved that now people are like, ‘What happened to my favourite stuffed animal? You guys changed it.’ I will say it grows on you. I have a feeling by Episode Three, Four, or Five, people will have adjusted to it.”
Although Hilfer is in charge of The White Lotus’s soundtrack - he joined for season two - all three themes have been composed by Cristobal Tapia de Veer.
“Cristo is his own creative force,” says Hillier, who confirms that there will be another new theme for season four. “He’s writing the music, and I’m not giving notes on the score. That’s his lane, and I’m in the other lane, but we collaborate and overlap since we’re both part of the music team. We’re kind of two sides of the musical coin.”
Hillier also works closely with White Lotus writer/director Mike White, and says that the authenticity of the music is important to everyone involved. Season three is set in Thailand and features - appropriately enough - a song called Made in Thailand by Thai band Carabao in the opening episode, while other Thai artists on the soundtrack include Charan Manophet, Little Fox and Sroeng Santi, whose cover of Black Sabbath’s Iron Man get an airing.
Inevitably, there’s also a space for Thai-inspired trio Khruangbin, while Blackpink’s Lisa - who stars in season three and hails from Thailand - has several tracks on the soundtrack, too.
