“The White Lotus” Season 3’s Original Setting Shifted from Japan to Thailand for Tax Rebate

“The White Lotus” Season 3 was initially planned for Japan but moved to Thailand for a 30% tax rebate. According to Toho Tombo producer Georgina Pope, there’s global interest in Japanese culture, art, fashion, and more, including Anime, Manga, and film.

In a statement, Pope said, “The world is in love with Japan.” Pope added, “There is a massive global interest in everything Japanese: art, fashion, youth culture, food. And IP such as Anime, Manga, and film.”

A Thai production company informed them about a 30% rebate from the Thai government, totaling 4.4 million dollars for their project. In contrast, Japan had no incentives at the time, leading to a significant financial loss for the $35 million project.

Pope said, “It was a Thai production company informing them that the Thai government had just announced a renewal and improvement on their film incentive system. A 30% rebate. For their project, that meant 4.4 million dollars alone.” Pope added, “Everyone looked at me with sympathy. At the time, in Japan, we had no incentive in place at all. I could not respond with a concrete answer. All I could hear was the sound of a 35 million dollar project flying out the window.”

Following Pope’s speech, it was confirmed that Mike White, the showrunner, was scouting for the third season of “The White Lotus.” He chose to shoot in neighboring countries instead of Japan due to the issues mentioned.

HBO announced “The White Lotus” Season 3 in November 2022. Natasha Rothwell is set to return as Belinda from the first season, and the rest of the cast will be revealed shortly.

“The White Lotus” Season 1 won 10 Emmy awards, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series. Jennifer Coolidge also won a Golden Globe for Season 2, which was named Best Limited Series. The show received two SAG awards, one for Best TV Drama Ensemble and another for Jennifer Coolidge’s performance.

White also serves as an executive producer alongside David Bernad and Mark Kamine.

RELATED: Theo James Says ‘The White Lotus’ Season 2 Nudity Was Toned Down

When is the release date for “The White Lotus” Season 3?

“The White Lotus” Season 3 is set to premiere on Max in late 2024.