‘The White Lotus’ will shoot season 4 in Paris and the French Riviera
Although HBO has not yet officially confirmed that season 4 of “The White Lotus” will be filmed in France, Variety has learned that the hit Mike White anthology will indeed next film in the country and has even actively scouted locations in two iconic locations: Paris and the French Riviera.
Like season 3 – which was shot mainly on the island of Koh Samui with some episodes in Bangkok, where Rick Hatchett (Walton Goggins) prepares a doomed revenge plot – the story of season 4 will likely take place largely in the south of France, with a subplot in Paris. At this time, no hotels have been closed for season 4, which is still in development and won’t film until next year, according to sources.
While the past three seasons have been set at Four Seasons hotels in Hawaii, Sicily and Thailand, Season 4 will take a different route as HBO has not renewed its marketing partnership with the Four Seasons hotel chain.
Luxury hotels visited in Paris include the iconic Le Lutetia, a five-star hotel on the Left Bank of the Seine, in the chic Saint-Germain des Pres district. Built in 1910 (now part of the Mandarin Oriental chain), Le Lutetia has been a second home to a number of iconic figures throughout history, including Charlie Chaplin, Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso and Josephine Baker. The other Parisian palace being considered for Season 4 is the Ritz Paris, another five-star hotel that opened in 1898 and was a favorite meeting place for the likes of Coco Chanel, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Marcel Proust.
White, who likes to cultivate some mystery and suspense around his show, gave a puzzling clue about the location of Season 4 in the “post-episode” clip package that aired on HBO after the Season 3 finale. “For the fourth season, I want to get a little bit out of the crashing waves of rocks,” he teased. “But there’s always more room for more murders in the White Lotus hotels.” Locations with rocky beaches on the French Riviera include Monaco and Nice.
Like other seasons that have seen wealthy Americans vacation at idyllic resorts and mingle with local characters, season 4 will likely feature French talent in addition to American actors. While the cast largely varies from season to season, there are some recurring characters, such as Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge), Greg (Jon Gries), and Belinda (Natasha Rothwell). It would certainly be fun to see Charlotte LeBon, the French-Canadian actor who plays Chloé, return in season 4.
