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The White Lotus is reportedly returning to Europe for its coming fourth season, with speculation emerging on Friday that creator Mike White and HBO have their eyes on the French Riviera for the next instalment of the satirical anthology series.
Deadline reported mounting speculation that the new series will unfold in the Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat, perched on the tip of the Cap-Ferrat peninsula. Anonymous sources told the outlet no decision on a venue had been made, but Deadline noted the hotel’s proximity to Cannes gave it some Hollywood flavour, as many stars stay there while attending the film festival.
The Grand Hotel du Cap-Ferrat in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, southeastern France is rumoured to be the next White Lotus location. Credit: AFP
Other Four Seasons hotels in France include the Megeve in the French Alps and Hotel George V, in the heart of Paris. However, the action does not necessarily happen in the one hotel. Although most of the filming in during season three occurred at Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, three other non Four Seasons hotels were also used as locations.
Although a grand landmark, the Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat has only featured on screen a handful of times, including in the 1988 Steve Martin comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and in the 2016 film Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie.
Previous seasons of The White Lotus have taken place in beachside resorts in Hawaii, Italy and Thailand, adding further weight to the French Riviera speculation, although Deadline quoted White from earlier in the year as suggesting he was keen to move beyond the beach.
The White Lotus creator Mike White with Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Tayme Thapthimthong and Michelle Monaghan.
“For the fourth season, I want to get a little bit out of the crashing waves of rocks vernacular, but there’s always more room for more murders at the White Lotus hotels,” White said in April.
That set off fevered speculation filming might move somewhere a little chillier, such as Norway, although the lack of a Four Seasons hotel in the country soon put paid to those suggestions. Japan, with three Four Seasons hotels, was in the frame for season two, until Thailand swooped with a generous tax rebate.
Lending weight to the French Riviera theory is that White is said to prefer a warmer environment.
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“Mike doesn’t like the cold,” his long-time producing partner David Bernad, told The Guardian in February.
Europe has long been touted for the new series, with HBO executive Francesca Orsi telling Deadline in February – just weeks after a new season had been approved – a European location was likely.
“We’re going on some locations scouting in the next couple of weeks, so we’ll know soon,” Orsi said. “I can’t really say where we’re going to land, but chances are somewhere in Europe.”
That’s a bit of a disappointment for Australian fans – White had suggested on a 2023 visit for Vivid that he was considering heading Down Under for a future instalment.
“My dream would be to hit every continent, so yeah, this is like its own continent basically,” he said. “We kind of have to come to Australia if we keep going ... It would be so fun. Obviously, there’s a huge wealth of talent here and the beauty is inarguable, so it feels like it checks all the boxes.”
Sadly, not this time around.
Greg (Jon Gries) with Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) in season two of The White Lotus.
Who will star?
The shady Greg (Jon Gries) has starred in all three seasons, changing his identity in season three to “Gary” and hiding in Thailand while he was sought for questioning over Tanya’s death in season three.
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Other returning cast could also include the wealthy Ratliff family, who were last seen checking their phones as they sailed into the sunset – and apparent financial oblivion – at the end of season three. Parker Posey’s Victoria Ratliff was the spiritual heir to Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya McQuoid, so it would make sense for White to bring her back. And the straightened circumstances the Ratliffs were facing wouldn’t be an issue – we all know wealthy white men like Timothy (Jason Isaacs) and their wealthy white families rarely suffer for too long for their dodgy business dealings.
What else do we know?
Not too much. We do know the music will certainly change, as composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer told The New York Times earlier this year he would not be returning.
It could also take a while to land – when Variety broke news of the show’s renewal in January it reported that production was slated for 2026.
One thing we do know is White has been busy filming the 50th season of US Survivor in Fiji, which was in production in the middle of the Emmy campaign season.
He will also presumably appear on the Emmys red carpet on September 15 (Australian time), with season three of The White Lotus nominated for 23 awards. Hopefully, there’ll be more answers then (but don’t count on it).
The White Lotus streams on HBO Max.
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