The White Lotus is a dramedy anthology that premiered on HBO Max last year. The series follows a group of strangers all staying at a White Lotus resort hotel over the course of a week and dives into each character’s life, issues, desires, and pain points during their week-long stay.
The first season was set in Hawaii and was the most-awarded series at the 74th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, winning 10 awards in total. The second season, which will wrap up on December 11, takes place in Sicily and focuses on a brand-new cast of characters staying at a different White Lotus location — although Jennifer Coolidge’s character did make a return. Each White Lotus character is flawed in their own ways — which is part of what makes the show so entertaining to watch as the drama unfolds — but some are more flawed than others. With a whole new cast of characters to watch, let’s rank season two’s main characters.
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10 Dominic
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Played by Sopranos alum Michael Imperioli, Dominic is on vacation in Sicily with his father Bert and son Albie to reconnect with their Sicilian roots. Dominic really isn’t a great guy. He cheated on his wife back home — and continued to do so in Sicily — and he also has pretty clear issues with taking accountability for his actions.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
Aside from his history of bad behavior and poor choices, any time Dominic is on screen he’s doing something eyeroll-worthy. Whether it’s lying to his family, trying to buy back his wife, or frankly, just acting like a boomer, Dominic is a pretty flawed character. To be fair though, it wouldn’t be The White Lotuswithout a cast with questionable morals.
9 Bert
Bert is Dominic’s elderly father and Albie’s grandfather, played by F. Murray Abraham (Scarface). Bert is really just your standard grandpa and Abraham plays the role quite well. For the most part, he just seems like an old man who’s excited to delve into his Sicilian culture with his son and grandson. At the beginning, there’s something a bit endearing about him. However, that doesn’t last too long.
Turns out Bert was also unfaithful to his wife and not the best father figure to Dominic. He’s also pretty sexist and misogynistic — and chalks it up to being old — and may remind you of that one out-of-touch family member you dread seeing at holiday dinners. At times, it’s hard to tell if Bert’s character is truly better than Dominic’s. But Bert feels mostly harmless as opposed to Dominic actively harming his family.
8 Cameron
Cameron is a true man’s man. He’s a wealthy businessman, a true lothario and is primarily driven by wealth and status. Played by Theo James (Divergent), Cameron isn’t really the type of guy you’d probably want to be with. From cheating on his wife to flirting with his “friend’s” wife and generally being manipulative, he’s got no shortage of character flaws. What’s most interesting about Cameron’s character is that when you peel back the lawyer, his whole person seems to be an exaggerated facade. All in all, Cameron isn’t the worst character. His time on screen is often entertaining, dramatic, and overall fun to watch. But the fact that he’s so non-genuine makes his character more low tier than the rest.
7 Ethan
Ethan is really hard to pin down. At first, it’s like you want to feel bad for him. He’s often living in Cameron’s shadow, his wife doesn’t seem to have wanted to come on the vacation, and he’s constantly comparing himself and his life to that of Cameron and Daphne. But then you get to know him a bit more and realize he’s willing to lie and put on a front to make himself look and feel better in front of others, as if his image is the most important thing to him. To play devil’s advocate though, Ethan is newly wealthy and trying to navigate the ups and downs of that — but still. Played by Will Sharpe, Ethan is clearly in need of some internal growth, and it’s not likely that a White Lotus resort is going to be the place to get it.
6 Portia
Portia is another hard to pin down character. Played by Haley Lu Richardson (Unpregnant), it’s hard to figure out what Portia wants. She’s at the resort with Tanya as her assistant, but it’s hard to tell what her job as an assistant even is aside from just keeping Tanya company. She’s also just at a weird spot in her life that most people face in their 20s where you just don’t know what you want or where you’re trying to get. It’s fair and even relatable. That said, it kinda sucked the way she curved good guy Albie for Jack, the more exotic bad boy with a rich uncle.
5 Daphne
Daphne, played by Meghann Fahy (The Bold Type), is Cameron’s wife. She comes off as pretty oblivious, totally enveloped in her own posh and privileged bubble and way out of touch with reality. However, later we find out that she’s not as unaware as she appears to be. She knows her and Cameron put on a front for everyone, and she knows he cheats on her. But she makes it clear that she’s not a victim and “does what she needs to do” to get over it and continue on. This deeper look into who Daphne is makes her more interesting and dynamic than a lot of the other people staying at the resort.
4 Albie
Albie is the good guy of the season. Played by Adam DiMarco, Albie — like Harper — is one of the few characters staying at the resort that has a solid moral compass. He may not really want to be in Sicily, but he understands how much is means to his grandpa. And he’s also always the first to let his dad — Dominic — know he needs to clean up his act if he wants a chance at putting the family back together. Albie is also always the first to call out his dad and grandpa on their poor behavior and tries to help them catch up with the time and generally be better people. He’s also very kind and respectful to women — which really can’t be said for any of the other men this season.
3 Mia and Lucia
Mia and Lucia are two local Italian escorts who meet up with Dominic when he arrives at the resort. Mia (Beatrice Granno) has dreams of becoming a famous singer and pianist. She doesn’t love that her friend Lucia is working as an escort, but she eventually finds that she could use the work to her advantage to help her further her dreams. Lucia (Simona Tabasco) dreams of a safe, secure life outside of her current line of work — maybe even outside of her home country — where she could find love and happiness.
At first it seems like these two are simply meant to cause trouble between the resort patrons, but they’re so much more than that. While they’re both their own characters, Mia and Lucia have actually become the standout favorites among fans of the show this season.
2 Harper
Played by the extremely talented Aubrey Plaza, Harper seems to be one of the only characters with a decent head on her shoulders. She sees right through Cameron and Daphne and really puts up a fight with her husband Ethan when he insists on faking their excitement on the trip to make Cameron and Daphne happy. Simply put, Harper is one of the few “real” people staying at the resort. She doesn’t care about status or her image and just wants to make it through the vacation with as few headaches as possible — which a lot of people can probably relate to. Plus, Aubrey Plaza is just such a multi-talented actress, it’s really entertaining to see how she brought Harper to life.
1 Tanya
Tanya has to be one of the most interesting characters on TV right now. She’s so strange and weird but also so lovable and endearing. There’s just something so captivating about her. Played by the incredible Jennifer Coolidge, Tanya is a very wealthy, very unstable woman who seems to just be coasting through the motions, totally in her own world.
Tanya was introduced in season one as a grieving daughter looking to find love and companionship at the Hawaiian branch of The White Lotus resort and is the only character to reappear in season two — and for good reason. She’s unlike any other character on the show and not only commands your attention, but brings a lot to the table in terms of entertainment. She’s always going through something a little rough, and you can’t help but keep watching for what’s going to happen next, while simultaneously wishing her the best. Maybe we’ll see Tanya again in the next season of The White Lotus, as it was recently renewed for its third.
