'The White Lotus' season 3 is taking us to Thailand

The White Lotus season 3 is officially a go—and we finally know where it's heading. 

The show's first season—which earned 20 nominations and 10 wins at the 2022 Emmys, including Best Limited or Anthology Series—was a class conflict set in the tropical islands of Hawaii. The White Lotus season 2 took on sexual tension and power dynamics in Taormina, capping off its sultry Sicilian adventures on Sunday, December 21.

The third edition was officially greenlit about a month earlier, on November 18 ("Wee-hee!" in the words of our Oreo cake-loving socialite Tanya McQuoid), but we didn't yet know what the season's luxurious setting would be...until now. 

Yet another season of wealthy, whiny vacationers getting their comeuppance? Sign us up! From filming locations to returning characters, here's all your The White Lotus season 3 intel.

*Warning: spoilers ahead for The White Lotus season 2*

'The White Lotus' season 3: everything we know so far

"There's no place I'd rather work than HBO and there's no people I'd rather partner with than Casey Bloys, Francesca Orsi, Nora Skinner, and their incredible team," said creator, writer and director Mike White in a statement about the show's third-season pickup. "I feel so lucky to get this opportunity again and am excited to reunite with my amazingly talented collaborators on The White Lotus." 

“Reflecting on The White Lotus' humble, run-and-gun origin as a contained pandemic production, it’s impossible not to be awestruck by how Mike orchestrated one of the buzziest and most critically acclaimed shows,” said Francesca Orsi, executive vice president of HBO Programming and head of HBO drama series and films. “And yet, he’s only continued to reach new heights in season 2, which is the ultimate testament to Mike’s raw, unparalleled vision.“

Orsi's statement continued: “His courage to explore the uncharted waters of the human psyche, paired with his signature irreverent humor and buoyant directing style, have us all dreaming of more vacation days at the resort we’ve come to adore. We couldn’t be more thrilled to get the chance to collaborate on a third season together.”

Get ready for 'The White Lotus': Thailand edition

On Monday, March 27, Variety reported exclusively that The White Lotus season 3 would be taking place in Thailand, per "multiple sources close to the production."

Though filming on the third season hasn't yet begun, Mike White has reportedly been spending time location-scouting in the Southeast Asian country. And there are plenty of Four Seasons properties for the production to choose from—in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and the Golden Triangle—as both the Hawaii and Sicily seasons of the show took place at outposts of the luxury resort chain. 

The show creator did previously hint that season 3 would be taking place somewhere in Asia. “I think it’d be fun to like, maybe go to a whole different continent,” Mike White said during a red-carpet interview with Deadline at the season 2 premiere. “You know, we did Europe. Maybe like, Asia? Or something crazy like that. That would be fun.”

Curious about where was The White Lotus filmed? Season one transported viewers to Maui, Hawaii, with the Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea subbing in for the titular luxury resort. The second season brought us to Europe, Italy to be exact, at yet another Four Seasons property: the San Domenico Palace, located in the Sicilian resort town of Taormina. 

When will we get 'The White Lotus' season 3?

There is no set release date just yet for The White Lotus season 3 but if we use the period between the second season's pick-up (August 2021) and its premiere (October 2022) as a framework, we can expect a third season sometime in late 2023 or early 2024.

'The White Lotus' season 3 cast: who will be returning?

Like its location, the anthology series has introduced new characters with each installment. However, two cast members from season one made it to the cast of The White Lotus season 2: Jennifer Coolidge’s ridiculous and ridiculously hilarious Tanya McQuoid and Jon Gries, who plays Tanya's new husband Greg. 

And while it's unclear if any season 2 cast members like Theo James, Haley Lu Richardson, or Adam DiMarco will be back for The White Lotus season 3, we do know of one character who will likely not be returning for the third edition: Tanya. 

"Well, Jennifer is my friend and yeah, everybody loved her in the first season,” White told Deadline back in October 2022. “And I was like, I can’t go to Italy without Jennifer. And maybe that’s still the case, like, maybe I can’t go to Japan without Jennifer either.”

However, that was months before the season 2 finale, which saw the demise of Coolidge's character. So unless the third season serves as a prequel in The White Lotus universe, it is unlikely Coolidge will be participating. 

However, White hasn't ruled out the reprisal of other characters. "There are so many fun actors we've worked with so far so it’s just kind of [about] who’s available, and who will do it," he told Deadline, teasing. "It's fun to bring somebody back from some season."

What will "The White Lotus' season 3 be about?

“The first season kind of highlighted money, and then the second season is sex,” White said in the “Unpacking S2 E7” clip that played after the season 2 finale. “I think the third season would be maybe a satirical and funny look at death and Eastern religion and spirituality. It feels like it could be a rich tapestry to do another round at White Lotus.”

White previously hinted at a potential storyline that was actually initially pitched for the second season but was swapped out in favor of season 2's current sexual-politics storylines. 

"I might still do it down the road maybe, if they give us a third season, so I don't know if I should say," he told Entertainment Weekly. "Originally, it was more of like a Bilderberg conference, more about getting into some of the bigger power dynamics there. But Sicily was a totally different vibe than the idea I pitched. That didn't seem right."

So will we get into free-market capitalism and world war in season 3, or religion and spirituality? Stay tuned!

The White Lotus season 2 is available for streaming on HBO and HBO Max.