‘Succession’ Fans Moved on to ‘The White Lotus’ — Is It a Similar Series?
After two seasons of HBO‘s Succession, viewers moved on to another comedy satire series — The White Lotus. Although the shows seem different, numerous similarities brought fans to The White Lotus while they await the return of Succession Season 3. After streaming the new limited HBO series, the dark humor hooked viewers. Most of all, fans want to know who dies in The White Lotus?
Is ‘Succession’ similar to ‘The White Lotus’ on HBO?
The White Lotus episodes follow several groups of wealthy people, whereas Succession closely follows one billionaire family. The new HBO limited series portrays a week-long vacation at an extravagant resort in Hawaii over six episodes. Succession follows the life of the Roy family, primarily set in New York City. However, as fans of the series know, the billionaires often travel to luxurious locations such as a castle in England. Money is no object in either HBO series.
However, The White Lotus shows extremely wealthy people intertwined with the staff at the resort instead of only in the background on Succession. Spa director, Belinda (Natasha Rothwell), finds herself wrapped up in one guest’s life oddly and quickly — Tanya McQuoid’s (Jennifer Coolidge). Plus, newlyweds Shane Patton (Jake Lacy) and Rachel (Alexandra Daddario) don’t have the picture-perfect honeymoon. Shane doesn’t understand why his new bride might want to continue her career although she married into money.
The underlying theme of wealth and class is prevalent throughout both HBO shows. Plus, someone heads home in a box during a flashback in the opening scene of the new limited series. Who dies in The White Lotus? After the first episode, fans aren’t sure whether the death was an accident or a murder. However, it does remind viewers of how Logan Roy (Brian Cox) swept Kendall’s (Jeremy Strong) car accident under the rug with his money and power in the Succession Season 1 finale.
‘The White Lotus’ director compared the series to HBO’s ‘Succession’
Filmmaker Mike White is no stranger to HBO. He was the co-creator, executive producer, writer, director, and one of the actors on the HBO series Enlightened. Although White had a “bad taste in his mouth” after the executives canceled his former show after two seasons, he tried again with The White Lotus. In an interview with Carrie Batton at The New Yorker, the director opened up about the similarities and differences between HBO’s Succession and White Lotus.
“I think of that show, Succession,” White told the outlet. “It’s a great show, but it’s very king’s court. You can kind of otherize them. They’re billionaires. With White Lotus, I wanted it to be more like — this is your next-door-neighbor rich person who is part of the system.”
White’s HBO series, Enlightened, also strived to tackle wealth inequality and struggles. However, White’s hope with White Lotus was to make the characters more relatable. He added that he didn’t intend for viewers to look at the characters in White Lotus as “bad guys.” Instead, the filmmaker wanted fans to see themselves.
“I wanted them to see the rich people in the show and think, That’s me—I am that person. I’ve said those things. I’ve been defensive in that way.”
Both HBO shows have an air of mystery about what’s going to happen next
Like Succession, there is a mystery buried within the satirical comedy series The White Lotus. Who dies in The White Lotus? White explained to the New Yorker that he began the series with a dead body to create that ominous dark feeling — “this sense of dread.” Succession began with the Roy family patriarch almost dying.
As Succession Season 2 continues, viewers watched Logan become even more vengeful and dark. Who becomes his predecessor? Both shows head down a dangerous path as viewers hypothesize over how the series answers their main question. At the same time, issues of wealth, power, and class arise. The White Lotus pulled fans who love Succession into its grips with only the first episode. The White Lotus airs Sundays at 9 p.m. EST on HBO and HBO Max.
