HBO's 3-Part Masterpiece Series With Zero Bad Episodes Is Perfect From Start To Finish

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Walton Goggins looks worried in The White Lotus

Published Mar 2, 2026, 9:30 AM EST

Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020.

While every season of The White Lotus takes place in a new setting with new characters, this just allows the show to exemplify a perfect execution of the anthology format. There are a lot of underrated anthology shows out there, but most conform to the standard format for the genre.

The White Lotus Is An Anthology Done Right

Alexandra Daddario smiling in The White Lotus season 1

The anthology series American Horror Story instead introduces a new set of characters each season, allowing the show to tell longer, more immersive stories while still mixing up its cast of characters with each outing. While it works well in American Horror Story and the Shudder series Slasher, The White Lotus perfected this style.

While The White Lotus season 1’s cast of characters stayed at the eponymous hotel resort in Hawaii, season 2’s all-new cast of characters stayed at a Sicilian branch of the same luxury resort. Season 2 saw the show move to a Bangkok branch of the same titular chain, introducing another whole new set of characters.

Although each season features a murder that is central to the story of the season, the show is far from a traditional murder mystery. Instead, The White Lotus utilizes the format of a murder mystery to satirize the wealthy clientele of these exclusive resorts and cast a critical eye on the impact of their tourism on these idyllic locations.

The White Lotus Season 4 Already Sounds Exciting

Aimee Lou Wood smiling in The White Lotus

By The White Lotus season 3’s ending, it had become clear that the show knows how to masterfully balance different tones depending on the storyline of each season. While season 1 was uncomfortably cringe-inducing but often hilarious, season 3 is outright grim and bleak, especially as the show winds toward its painful, tragically inevitable conclusion.

Judging by what little readers have heard so far, the show’s next outing will continue its inventive, globe-hopping take on unconventional murder mysteries. After sojourns to Hawaii, Italy, and Thailand, the series will visit the South of France in season 4, bringing a new cast that includes Sandra Bernhard, Steve Coogan, Helena Bonham Carter, and Chris Messina.

Will The White Lotus Formula Ever Get Old?

Sydney Sweeney as Olivia Mossbacher smiling in The White Lotus

Although The White Lotus season 4’s cast is impressive, it is the show’s format that makes the series such a success. With such drastically different settings in each season, the series is able to address a broad range of social, cultural, and political issues through its twisty storytelling.

Simultaneously functioning as a dark character drama, a sharp comedic satire, and an unconventional murder mystery, The White Lotus has a reliable formula that could keep the series alive for years to come. Only time will tell whether The White Lotus season 4 can live up to the hype, but the show’s critical success so far bodes well for its upcoming outing.