When satirical drama The White Lotus first aired in 2021, it was something of a sleeper hit. The cast was an unassuming mix of actors who were big in the Nineties and B-movie pin-ups, and the show’s creator, Mike White, was best known as the real Ned Schneebly from School of Rock. But after two years of pandemic-induced travel restrictions, the infusion of luxury resort life into the television schedule was an unqualified hit. And so, naturally, the show had to return for a second outing.
This season’s wintery trip to summery Sicily has been a delight. The tension has been ramped up notch by notch in each episode, until, heading into last night’s finale, the pitch was excruciating. Would the unhappy marriage of Harper (Aubrey Plaza) and Ethan (Will Sharpe) disintegrate? What is Lucia (Simona Tabasco) planning with Albie (Adam DiMarco)? And what, for that matter, is Tom Hollander’s Quentin doing with Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya?
