Meet the cast and characters of The White Lotus Season 2

At this moment, my feelings are all bittersweet. This is because HBO generously provided episodes of The White Lotus Season 2 for review. Five of seven episodes.

The first one opens with a short scene revealing there are “a few” dead bodies in the sea, guests from the resort. Then, while you’re still going “Ooooh!”,  it veers off to “one week earlier” and we see the unfolding events that may or may not have culminated in the incident. Up till the end of episode 5, there is no hint as to who they are but you can be pretty damn sure there are plenty of potential victims – and killers, if it was, in fact, murder.

The mixed feelings I am experiencing is because Season 2 of The White Lotus is exquisite. I loved every moment so much that I was prepared to go back to the beginning and watch them all again right away. Yes, it’s that good. However, as it stands now, because HBO releases only one episode a week (landing in the US on 30 October, and coming straight to Showmax on 31 October), I must wait until December to find out what happened. First-world problems, I tell you.

How is Season 2 related to Season 1?

Being an anthology series, Season 2 can stand alone. Only Jennifer’s Coolidge’s character, Tanya, and her husband Greg (Jon Gries) make a return appearance. She refers to the nice lady from the spa (Season 1, Maui) and expresses some regret that she didn’t take that connection further. Greg had a terminal illness but Tanya’s fortune bought him back his life. Now you’re all caught up and ready to watch Season 2.

Who’s who in The White Lotus Season 2

The location is Sicily and this is a cinematic love letter to the island. You will want to go there at once (Four Seasons San Domenico Palace in the town of Taormina if you wish to make travel plans). The boat arrives at the dock with a group of new guests, where they are greeted by resort manager Valentina (Sabrina Impacciatore); in the background are two young women, Lucia (Simona Tabasco) and Mia (Beatrice Grannò), billed as “local girls” in the credits. Lucia is in fact an “escort” and Mia is her friend. Lucia is waiting for one specific guest with whom she’s had contact online.

Valentina (Sabrina Impacciatore): The resort manager has her hands full trying to keep Lucia and Mia off the property. She has a crush on one of her underlings, to whom she makes awkward advances.

Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge): Tanya is the same as she ever was – kooky, insecure, anxious, demanding, high maintenance. Greg arrives with her, and indulges her Sicilian dream, but then packs his bags and leaves suddenly. Work, he says. Tanya’s reaction is to ask Valentina to recommend a psychic or fortune teller, pronto. Pronto means immediately. It’s also how Italians answer the phone, as in “speak now”.

Greg (Jon Gries): Far from being grateful for Tanya saving his life, Greg is a nasty piece of work. He gaslights Tanya, and manipulates her and tells her she’s fat (one of the worst sins a man can commit). He tells her to send her assistant home, because why must she be on holiday with them? A classic abusive trait is to isolate the victim…

Portia (Tanya’s personal assistant, Haley Lu Richardson): Banished to her room instead of being put on a plane, Portia is told to stay out of sight but to remain available. Portia does not stay in her room, and she meets sweet Albie, among others. She likes Albie but he’s a bit too nice, which is the problem when we all say “I just want a nice guy”.

Father, son and grandson, Bert (F Murray Abraham), Dom (Michael Imperioli, The Sopranos), and Albie (Adam DiMarco): Bert is incorrigible, making comments to women we now find inappropriate  or offensive. His history is connected to that of his son, Dom, in that they both cheated on their wives. Albie is determined not to follow in the family footsteps, hence his niceness and professed respect for women.

Foursome on a group holiday, Cameron (Theo James) and Daphne (Meghann Fahy), and Ethan (Will Sharpe) and Harper (Aubrey Plaza): Cameron is an arrogant jerk and his marriage with shallow Daphne is fake as; they pretend perfection but beneath the shiny surface is rot and decay. They don’t even watch the news! Or vote! Ethan and Cameron were at college together and are now both super rich, independently from each other. Harper does not like Cameron and Daphne, but she fraudulently tries to get along with them. There are multiple dynamics at play within this foursome, fuelled by secrets and lies that escalate during their time at The White Lotus.

Quentin (Tom Hollander): A gay man of a certain age, with wealth equal to or more than Tanya’s. He warmly invites her into his inner circle and treats her like a queen. He is not all he seems.

Jack, Quentin’s nephew (Leo Woodall): An Essex lad, stereotypically known to have a “cheeky sense of humour and brazenness, as well as the pride they take in their appearance” and portrayed as such. His path crosses with Portia and Tanya’s and there’s a big shock at the end of episode 5.

The Hotel Pianist who has lines but is nowhere on the internet: He fancies Mia but she is not having any of this old man nonsense touching her. When he offers to help her with her singing career, she changes her tune (sorry, not sorry) with disastrous results.

For the most part there are way fewer than six degrees of separation between any of these characters.

Early reviews are in from other publications who had the same episodes. “This immaculate show’s writing is utterly unrivalled,” raves The Guardian. “The guests are still awful, the show still utterly addictive,” from NME. Darren Franich from Entertainment Weekly compares Season 1 and shares his thoughts, but overall, he loves it: “Corpses, plural. Threesomes, plural. So many romantic triangles it’s more like a pentagram. And friends who hate each other discuss the apocalypse at their first nice meal. Expect more everything as The White Lotus transforms from an acclaimed limited event into an ongoing series.”

Do note, these links contain spoilers.

Stream Season 1 of The White Lotus on Showmax now, and watch new episodes weekly on Mondays from 31 October.