\n<\/p>\n
A luxury hotel marries the exotic and the familiar: The location may be new and the fruits at the breakfast buffet varied, but the thread count of the sheets, the indulgence of the staff, the sumptuousness of the spa \u2014 these remain the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe White Lotus,\u201d Mike White\u2019s HBO show about the guests and workers of a five-star resort collection, knows this well. Maybe too well? If the surroundings for the third season of this cringingly comic, lightly murderous anthology series<\/a> are different \u2014 with Koh Samui, Thailand<\/a>, replacing Maui (Season 1) and Sicily (Season 2) \u2014 the characters haven\u2019t really changed. (And is there at least one uncomfortable scene aboard a boat? You bet your yachting whites.) So garnish your poolside cocktail, tie on your sarong and see if you can spot White\u2019s favorite types.<\/p>\n In Season 1 it was the privileged mama\u2019s boy, Shane (Jake Lacy). In Season 2, it was Cameron (Theo James), a moneyman who managed to be both smarmy and oblivious.<\/p>\n Thailand\u2019s entitled jackass, enrobed in family money, is Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger), a finance bro who eschews local cuisine in favor of protein shakes and complains when his massage doesn\u2019t include a \u201chappy ending.\u201d It is hard to imagine someone more in need of a comeuppance, but just deserts are rarely on White\u2019s hotel menu.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Remember the femmepreneur Nicole (Connie Britton), arranging meetings from her Maui hotel suite? Or Harper (Aubrey Plaza), an employment lawyer congenitally incapable of relaxing in Sicily? Neither of them seemed to be in as much leisure-wear agony as Timothy (Jason Isaacs) is this season.<\/p>\n A North Carolina financier accused of fiscal malfeasance \u2014 though Isaacs\u2019s accent often suggests other climes \u2014 Timothy\u2019s favorite vacation pastimes include sweating through upsetting phone calls and indulging in suicidal (and murderous) ideation.<\/p>\n In Season 1, Steve Zahn\u2019s Mark questioned the power dynamics of his marriage. The next year, Michael Imperioli\u2019s Dominic wrestled, at times literally, with sex addiction.<\/p>\n Now Walton Goggins\u2019s Rick has arrived in Koh Samui with his yoga instructor girlfriend and intense anhedonia. His enigmatic bitterness seems to involve his dead father. Why is he even on this vacation? Could it be vengeance?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n What longing lurks in the hearts of those behind the check-in desk? White knows.<\/p>\n In the first two seasons, those desires were for queer assignations: Armond (Murray Bartlett) negotiated a tryst with his underling (Lukas Gage); Valentina (Sabrina Impacciatore) bargained for a night with Mia (Beatrice Grann\u00f2), a sex worker with songstress aspirations. So far, Fabian (Christian Friedel), the Koh Samui manager, has hopes that are showbiz related, not sexual.<\/p>\n In Season 1, the aesthetician Belinda (Natasha Rothwell) hoped to open her own spa \u2014 she\u2019s still holding onto that hope in Season 3. Mia (while not technically an employee, she catered to the hotel\u2019s clientele) traded sex for a stint as the resort\u2019s lounge singer in Season 2.<\/p>\n This season also features Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong), a security guard crushed out on a colleague, who hopes to show how brave he can be. If the gunshots in the season opener mean anything, he may get his chance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Friends don\u2019t often stay friends at the White Lotus. Season 1 drove a wedge between the college student Paula (Brittany O\u2019Grady) and her richer friend Olivia (Sydney Sweeney). In Season 2, the newly wealthy Ethan (Will Sharpe) fell out with his obnoxious former roommate, Cameron. (And maybe swapped wives? Unclear.)<\/p>\n This season Laurie (Carrie Coon) resents Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan), the childhood pal turned famous actress who paid for the trip. Kate (Leslie Bibb), who alternates with Laurie as the third wheel, has resentments of her own.<\/p>\n White tends to have sympathy, however limited, for the youngest guests and workers, especially women contemplating a change. But change, like securing the Pineapple Suite, is hard. In Season 1, the newlywed Rachel (Alexandra Daddario<\/a>) saw her marriage in a harsher light. In Season 2, the guileless personal assistant, Portia (Haley Lu Richardson) rethought the terms of her employment.<\/p>\n Season 3 has at least two <\/span>women eying different paths: the pert yogini, Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) and the budding Buddhist, Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook). Chelsea\u2019s vacation friend, Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon), another newlywed, doesn\u2019t seem especially satisfied either.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n When \u201cThe White Lotus\u201d debuted, one of the least objectionable characters was Quinn (Fred Hechinger), who fantasized about ditching his family to canoe with the locals. He had kinship with Season 2\u2019s Albie (Adam DiMarco), a na\u00eff who wanted to rescue a sex worker while also repairing his parents\u2019 marriage.<\/p>\n Their inheritor this season is Lochlan (Sam Nivola), whose personal wellness program includes a session to improve his posture. Will he stand up to his brother, Saxon, or assume a different position?<\/p>\n Jennifer Coolidge<\/a> was a standout in the first two seasons as Tanya, a White Lotus Blossom Circle Member<\/a> whose tranquilized drawl and unimprovable caftan wardrobe became signatures of the show. Tanya seemingly found love in Season 1 with Greg (Jon Gries), a Bureau of Land Management employee.<\/p>\n Greg bailed on the trip to Sicily, where Tanya sadly died, so doofily<\/a>, at the close of Season 2. One of those gays trying to murder her<\/a> had a photo of Greg. Huh. And isn\u2019t that him this season at the hotel bar in Thailand with his new wife, Chloe? He seems to have moved on fast \u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nHandsome Jerk Due for a Reckoning<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Uptight Workaholic Having a Bad Time<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nEsteemed Character Actor Undergoing Existential Torment<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Resort Manager With Secret Desires<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nResort Worker With Dreams of More<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Guest Who Secretly Hates Their Wealthy Friend<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nIng\u00e9nue Questioning Her Choices<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Callow Boy Who Might Become an OK Man<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nGreg Hunt<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n