SPOILER ALERT: This piece discusses the plot of The White Lotus season three finale and previous episodes
Each season of the White Lotus (Sky Atlantic, Monday, 9pm and streaming) starts with at least one violent death – and the series three finale finally confirms both this year’s body count and the identity of the victims. Yet alongside the bloodbath and amid the splendour of a Thai wellness resort, a muddled episode struggles to wrap up its loose ends and somehow wastes an exhausting 90-minute run-time. It is also guilty of an unexpected sappiness, hinting at additional deaths only to flinch and give several storylines an upbeat ending. Nobody would accuse the White Lotus of applying a feel-good glow to its depiction of American idiots abroad. Yet, third time out, there are indications showrunner Mike White might be sliding towards sentimentality.
But first, the body count. This is where the spoilers start, so please look away if you haven’t watched yet (it is your final warning). First to die is hotel owner Jim Hollinger (Scott Glenn) – whom Rick (Walton Goggins) blames for the death of his father and for his miserable childhood. Jim doesn’t help himself by insulting Rick’s mother. “I knew she was drunk and a slut. I didn’t think she was a liar, too,” he says. “Your father was no saint. You didn’t miss out on much, and that’s the truth.”
Devastated, Rick grabs Jim’s gun and shoots him point blank – only for the dead man’s wife, Sritala (Patravadi Mejudhon), to reveal that Jim was, in fact, Rick’s father. But it’s too late. A firefight breaks out. Rick’s poor, sweet girlfriend Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) perishes in the crossfire (along with two of Jim’s bodyguards). Rick flees with her body only to be gunned down by resort guard Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong) – who is haunted by the violence, though he has at least risen in the affections of would-be love interest Mook (Blackpink singer Lisa).
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Elsewhere, the tension is focused on soon-to-be-disgraced businessman Timothy Ratliff (Jason Isaacs), who considers the murder-suicide of his family via poisoned piña colada. He blanches. But then his youngest son Lochlan (Sam Nivola) drinks the deadly brew only to mysteriously survive – giving the dark episode an upbeat conclusion that feels trite and unearned.
There is likewise a positive send-off for Belinda (Natasha Rothwell), who accepts a $5 million bribe from Greg (John Gries) in return for staying schtum over his murder of his wealthy wife Tanya in series two. And that’s it – a drawn-out season wrapped up slightly too neatly and predictably. Rick’s instability had been clear from the outset, and the fact that Chelsea was the only entirely well-intentioned character in the whole ensemble always marked her out for an untimely demise.
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Where the latest White Lotus fails is in its attempt to draw a contrast between the morally bankrupt Americans and the spiritual renewal they seek in a tourist resort that exists only to cynically repackage Eastern spirituality for the rich. You feel White is grasping towards a profound point about consumerism and emotional needs that commerce cannot meet – yet it all melts away in a hail of gunfire. It’s been a wild ride – but after eight weeks, viewers may be relieved to finally check out of the White Lotus.
