You’ve only just got home from a holiday when you start planning the next one. So it is with the super-rich spa satire The White Lotus. The gunsmoke is still clearing from the finale of the third season but speculation is rife about where the HBO hit will head next.
This week’s climax of Mike White’s drama might have divided critics, but it was still group chat-dominating, column inch-gobbling TV, notching its highest ratings yet. The show was renewed for a fourth trip before the third had even aired, with White reportedly pitching HBO execs his next idea while still filming in Koh Samui. Buzz is now building about the next chapter, expected on our screens in late 2026.
Each season has unfolded at a luxury resort in a different region. Viewers have been whisked to the Pacific (the debut season in Hawaii), Europe (the Sicily-set sequel) and Asia (the third hotel from hell, filmed in Thailand). White has previously said his dream for the show is to “hit every continent”.
If the pattern continues, options are likely to be Africa (there are rumours of a Moroccan riad, Kenyan safari or a sightseeing tour of Egypt), South America (Buenos Aires has been mentioned) or Australia (White has alluded to its “wealth of talent”).
A factor is the production’s partnership with Four Seasons, after signing a reported £25m deal in 2021 to film exclusively in the high-end chain’s resorts. Its five-star hotel in Marrakech’s ancient medina has emerged as a frontrunner. White apparently stayed at the Four Seasons Tamarindo in Mexico before Christmas, potentially on a research trip. He is also said to have looked at £1,000-per-night glamping at the Four Seasons in Tanzania’s Serengeti national park.
There is conjecture that after three sun-soaked stories, a cold climate would provide a change of gear. White had been spotted in Norway, making that a strong favourite. Local press reports suggest it nearly happened for season three. There are no Four Seasons sites in Norway, but spectacular alternatives include the Juvet Landscape hotel, which featured in the HBO series Succession.
However, the show’s producer, David Bernad, has hinted this is a longshot, saying: “Mike doesn’t like the cold. He’s a California guy. He’s not built for snow.” For his part, White has teased that the fourth season could move away from beach settings, saying: “I want to get a little bit out of the ‘crashing waves on rocks’ vernacular.”
Tax incentives and subsidies will play a part in the decision, making Japan an attractive proposition. Four Seasons Kyoto or Osaka head the shortlist here. However, there have been calls for the production to stay closer to home. The media union Sag-Aftra wants the fourth season to be shot in California as part of its “stay in LA” initiative.
Perhaps the most definitive clue came from HBO’s head of drama, Francesca Orsi, who said in February: “We’re location scouting in the next couple of weeks. I can’t really say where we’re going to land but chances are somewhere in Europe.”
There are plenty of Four Seasons spots in mainland Europe to choose from, notably Cap-Ferrat in the French Riviera. However, White will not take an obvious path. “Where we choose to go next could be hugely impactful to that destination,” he told the Hollywood Reporter. “That’s why it was so cool to shoot in Thailand. It’s hard to go backward. Doing it in Paris feels like a cop-out.”
As for the season four cast? Stick a pin in a list of A-list acting talent. Woody Harrelson came close to being cast in season three as the Bangkok berserker Frank, ultimately played by Sam Rockwell. It was only scheduling conflicts that scuppered Harrelson’s involvement, so he could be high on the hitlist next time. Hollywood names will probably be joined by a scene-stealing British actor or two, with big impressions made by Tom Hollander, Leo Woodall, Jason Isaacs and Aimee Lou Wood in previous series.
Each season has featured overlapping characters. Jennifer Coolidge’s needy heiress Tanya McQuoid provided continuity between the first two seasons in meme-spawning style. In season three Natasha Rothwell returned as the spa manager Belinda and Jon Gries as Tanya’s murderous widower Greg AKA Gary.
Rothwell is a firm favourite with fans and could be due another comeback. Having tapped Greg for $5m hush money, Belinda has gone from put-upon staff to potential pampered guest. What better way to illustrate how wealth corrupts? Rothwell has said she “knows nothing” of what White has planned but would return if asked.
If she does not get the call, who are the other candidates? The unhappy honeymooners Shane and Rachel from season one (Jake Lacy and Alexandra Daddario) or season two’s sex worker Lucia (Simona Tabasco) could work well. If it is a season three star, possible names include Carrie Coon as the brittle lawyer Laurie Duffy, Patrick Schwarzenegger as the protein shake-guzzling Saxon Ratliff or Parker Posey as his mother, Victoria, set to become a “prison widow”.
White has even mentioned an all-star series as a “cool” idea. “I feel like they’d do all the douchiest guys together or all the hotel managers together,” said Schwarzenegger.
One member of the White Lotus team who will not be returning is the Emmy-winning composer Cristóbal Tapia de Veer, whose feud with White has played out in public. After De Veer spoke out about creative differences over the latest theme tune, White hit back that this was “a bitch move”. We can safely assume someone else will supply season four’s signature music.
