The White Lotus, creator Mike White’s Emmy-winning social satire, is officially returning with season 3. Like the first two, the new installment will take place at another one of the luxury hotel’s exotic locations, where a new group of guests and employees will find their lives clashing in unexpected ways.
Although HBO has not officially revealed any new or returning cast members, including Jennifer Coolidge, or where the new episodes will take place, White has shared some of his ideas while members of the sprawling ensemble have weighed in with ET about whether they would return.
As anticipation builds for another installment, here’s everything we know about the cast and the location of The White Lotus season 3.
The Cast
The biggest question is whether or not Coolidge will return as Tanya McQuiod, the grief-stricken guest who found solace in Greg Hunt (Jon Gries) in season 1 before the two’s romance started to fall apart in season 2. The 61-year-old actress won her first Primetime Emmy for season 1 and will likely be nominated again for reprisal.
In an interview with Deadline, White said that he couldn’t imagine doing another installment without her. “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.”
And Coolidge seems to be open for more. “Yes, yes. Of course,” she told ET when asked about returning, before adding, “I mean, I don’t know what Mike has in mind. But yes, I would love [to come back].”
However, based on the season 2 finale, Coolidge’s involvement with the series has come to an end.
Though, there are still plenty of other characters who could all return, with White previously revealing to New York magazine that he’s already thought about “bringing back season-one characters.” That said, he later told Deadline, “There are so many fun actors we’ve worked with so far, so it’s just kind of like who’s available.”
Of the season 1 ensemble, several have told ET that they are willing to come back for another stay at the White Lotus.
“I would do anything with Mike White. Like, White Lotus season 3 [or] something totally different. You know, help him move boxes into a new house. Like, whatever he wants. I absolutely adore him and think he’s a genius. So, if he’s got something going and I get a call, I will be there,” Jake Lacy said, confirming that he’s “100 percent” in if White wants him to reprise his role as demanding guest Shane Patton.
Alexandra Daddario, who played Shane’s wife Rachel, is also done to come back. “If he had a great idea, then of course,” she said. “I would do anything… Just being a small part of the series is amazing.”
“I would absolutely jump at the chance to play [spa manager Belinda] again. I think there’s so many stories to tell,” Natasha Rothwell previously said, later adding, “I don’t know what’s going to happen but I know I will follow Mike White to the ends of the earth.”
Connie Britton, who played mother and businesswoman Nicole Mossbacher, said, “With any luck, maybe I’ll be in another season.”
After the season 1 finale, Britton’s onscreen daughter, Sydney Sweeney, said there had been conversations with the show about the possibility of returning, with the Euphoria star revealing that she’s open to whatever direction the creator decides to take things in the future. “I’m just so excited for Mike,” she said. “Mike’s writing is just so much fun and so incredible.”
As for the season 2 cast, there are just as many who want to come back – especially now that audiences know who made it out of Sicily alive.
When asked if she could be back as the uptight Harper Spiller, Aubrey Plaza said, “I hope so. It depends on if I’m, like, a fan favorite. I think, you know, it just depends on who people want [to see again].”
F. Murray Abraham, who plays aging patriarch Bert Di Grasso, said he wants to return for season 3 as well as seasons 4 through 6 — if there are that many. “But I’m really happy to have been in this one,” he shared.
One guest fans know is alive and well is Daphne Babcock (Meghann Fahy), who found herself vacationing with Harper and their two husbands at the Sicilian property before discovering a mysterious body in the water. “Oh my God, of course,” Fahy said of returning. “I mean, I would pass out water on the third season. It’s such an amazing set to be on. Like, just to witness everybody working. The cast is so amazing and watching Mike work is so cool. I mean, I would totally be there, of course.”
Sadly, one other person who cannot return is Murray Bartlett as season 1’s hotel manager Armand. That is, unless “we, like, go back in time or something,” he offered. And that seems like an unlikely turn for the series.
The Location
While there’s no shortage of stars who want to return to the series, the biggest mystery is where White will take the story following places, like Hawaii and Sicily. And according to him, Asia is near the top of the list.
“I think it’d be fun to maybe go to a whole different continent. You know, we did Europe, and maybe Asia, something crazy like that, that would be fun,” White told Deadline, joking that “you can’t go to Japan without Jennifer, either.”
The country is a location he’s previously floated in an interview with New York magazine, so it seems likely that’s where season 3 is headed.
Though, the possibilities appear to be endless — just as long as they can film at a Four Seasons location, like they did with the first two installments. In season 1, the Four Seasons Maui served as the White Lotus property while Four Seasons San Domenico Palace was stand-in for the property in season 2.
According to the Four Seasons website, the hotel chain has locations in Central and South America as well as Asia and the Pacific ocean region.
The White Lotus seasons 1 and 2 are now streaming on HBO Max.