Everything we know about The White Lotus season 2 so far
The first trailer for the Italy-set season of The White Lotus gives us a look at new characters and the return of Jennifer Coolidge
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Fresh off of an impressive 20 Emmy nominations and 10 wins—including writing and directing trophies for show creator Mike White—The White Lotus is readying to return with more misadventures of the rich and privileged. White has said that he originally conceived of the satirical series as an anthology, with each season taking place at a different hotel in the White Lotus resort chain. Season two will have a new location and new characters, but that doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of everyone from season one. Now that the first trailer for the next season has arrived, some things are starting to come into view, but plenty of question marks remain. Read on for more details on what to expect in the critically acclaimed show’s sophomore outing.
This article was updated on October 6, 2022.
Some Quick Facts:
- The White Lotus season two will premiere on HBO and HBO Max on Oct. 30, 2022
- There will be seven episodes of The White Lotus: Sicily, one more than the six we got in season one
- As the new season’s subtitle indicates, it will be set in Italy at the Sicilian location of the White Lotus resort chain
HBO announced the premiere date on Sept. 23 on its official Twitter account with a video that’s somewhat reminiscent of the first season’s opening credits, which featured tropical wallpaper themed to the suites the characters occupied during their stay. The more you looked at the images, the more ominous they became. It looks like that idea, as well as the Emmy-winning theme music, has been adapted to fit the new Italian venue.
Who’s returning from season one?
Emmy winner Jennifer Coolidge will be back as Tanya, one of several guests vacationing at the elite Sicilian location of The White Lotus Resort and Spa. She’s now married to Greg (Jon Gries), another character we first met in season one. He was her former neighbor at the Hawaii hotel, who was there to fish with his buddies from the BLM (that’s the Bureau of Land Management, not Black Lives Matter, as Tanya originally thought). She’s bringing an assistant along with her this time (Haley Lu Richardson), and Greg isn’t too happy about it.
Coolidge also appeared in a special promotional spot for the fictional chain’s membership club, the “Blossom Circle,” which offers some early glimpses of the Italian resort.
New names on the guest list
F. Murray Abraham, Michael Imperioli, and Adam DiMarco will play grandfather, father, and son respectively, who have come to Sicily to “explore their ancestral roots,” as HBO put it in the official character descriptions. Abraham’s character Bert Di Grasso sees himself as a ladies’ man despite his advanced age. Imperioli plays Dominic Di Grasso, a Hollywood producer who inherited his father’s womanizing tendencies. As his son Albie, DiMarco is a recent college grad who has to be the peacekeeper of the family.
Aubrey Plaza and Will Sharpe play Harper and Ethan Spiller, a couple who have just come into a lot of money after selling a successful company. They are vacationing with Ethan’s college roommate Cameron, a wealthy playboy played by Theo James, and Cameron’s wife Daphne, a stay-at-home mom played by Meghann Fahy.
Tom Hollander plays Quentin, an English ex-pat taking a holiday with his charismatic nephew, played by Leo Woodall, and a group of friends.
Sabrina Impacciatore takes over the role of hotel manager from Emmy winner Murray Bartlett. Like Armond (at least when he was sober), her character Valentina runs a tight ship and demands exceptional service from her staff.
Other characters in the mix
Beatrice Grannò and Simona Tabasco play local girls who frequent the resort, despite Valentina constantly chasing them away. Mia (Grannò) is a talented singer chasing her big break, while Lucia (Tabasco) is there to entertain Imperioli’s character.
Where was season two filmed?
The production used another Four Seasons property to stand in for The White Lotus this season. The real hotel is the Four Seasons San Domenico Palace in Taormina, Sicily. It’s just as luxurious and beautiful as the Hawaii location (also a Four Seasons), in its own Italian way.
Will it carry on the themes of season one?
While still examining the blind spots of the upper class, the focus this season won’t be on the harms of colonialism, as it was in Hawaii. The show will continue to dig into gender and sexual politics, though, and the ways in which money complicates those issues. According to Mike White, “It definitely feels like White Lotus; the theme is different. It’s not about power dynamics, more men and women and sexual politics.” He has said that he took inspiration from a 12th-century legend about an Italian woman who angrily beheads her lover when she finds out he’s married. The latest trailer also hints at danger with images of a gun and a body bag, so perhaps another murder plot will unfold.
There’s still time to catch up on season one before it starts
All of the episodes of The White Lotus season one are available right now on HBO Max. You probably don’t need to have seen it all to be able to follow the new stories in The White Lotus: Sicily, but it’s still worth checking it out if you haven’t seen it yet.
15 Comments
Does seven episodes mean we get the traditional 6 episode UK season, with the accompanying Christmas Special?
F. Murray Abraham is a good addition. But no. Not he, nor even a return of the magnetic Alexandra Daddario could convince me to watch another series of this downer.
I’m with you. Abraham would be fantastic. Unfortunately I think Coolidge was one of the weaker characters in season one, so not happy she is part of this one. And Plaza? Ugg. I still can’t understand why so many people love her. Season one was… ok. I’ll skip two altogether.
If we were guaranteed a Connie Britton drop-in, I would definitely tune in.
Who shits? Who gets shit on?The world awaits…
Maybe the shitter becomes the shittee.
Will it be as over rated as the first season?
Feels like the Hawaiian setting was extremely important to the fabric of the entire show, but maybe that’s just why it popped for me in the first place. I guess you can tell stories about awful rich people anywhere.
Yes, there are infinite ways for wealthy people to wreak havoc on the non-wealthy.
As important as the wealthy/non-wealthy aspect was, I think equally important was the “tourists dropping in and how it effects the people who actually live there.” So basically any vacation destination would work.
The writing is season 1 was so good that I’m going to assume they’ll find ways to investigate similar themes in the new location. A bunch of rich Americans coming to Sicily to connect with their heritage by staying in a Four Seasons sounds like an appropriately oblivious place to start.ETA: I do agree that Paula’s treatment of Kai was a surprisingly bold move; yeah she’s a minority woman but still had the economic power to just throw Kai under the bus and go back to her life, after goading him into committing a felony by convincing him it was fair game reparations.
Season 3. Just Alex Daddario and Sydney Sweeny on screen for 8 episodes. Thats it. Thats the season.
Is it a real thing at super high end resorts for the staff to stand outside waving at you upon arrival?
I liked the Staff. It’s hard to imagine this without them ( and they’re dead or burnt out).
I think the only thing on most people’s minds is if we’ll be treated to a graphic depiction of a man shitting in a suitcase.