Who Dies in The White Lotus Season 3 Finale? Theories

HBO’s ‘The White Lotus’ reels in the audience with a mystery that sits at the heart of each season. Before telling us anything about the story and its characters, the show gives us a dead body and keeps the question of its identity alive for the entirety of the season, only revealing the truth in the finale. The third season, as well, works on the same formula as it introduces a dead body in the first ten minutes of the season. Belinda’s son, Zion, watches a body, face down in water, float towards him shortly after he hears gunshots. This confirms that at least one person is bound to die by the end of the season. But who is it going to be? Here’s a ranked list of all the characters—from the least likely to die to the most.

13. Piper Ratliff (Least Likely)

Over the course of three seasons, Mike White has established a few checkpoints in ‘The White Lotus’ that allow fans to speculate about the fate of the characters. One of the major things to appear so far is that the more innocent and removed from the worldly viles a person is, the lesser their chance of getting killed. In the third season, that person happens to be Piper Ratliff. Her father risks jail time for fraud, her mother cannot seem to function with Lorazepam, her elder brother is too consumed by the idea of his masculinity, and her younger brother is on a weird journey of his own.

Meanwhile. she is entirely focused on finding what truly matters and has decided to distance herself from them by choosing to spend another year in Thailand at a monastery. Even with all the drama going on around her, she has somehow remained removed from all that (reflecting her “hear no evil” monkey form) and has remained on a moral high ground so far. Due to this, it seems highly unlikely that she would be the one to bear the worst punishment amidst the guests who have been dabbling in all sorts of bad things. Piper just doesn’t deserve it, and that’s what keeps her safe.

12. Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie (Least Likely)

Even with all the apparent backstabbing, betrayals, talking behind each other’s backs, and sleeping with the crush of their friends, Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie aren’t inherently evil. At most, they are caught up in their own fallibilities, which often involve self-sabotaging rather than hurting someone else. The women have been caught up in this seemingly toxic cycle since they were teenagers, and something tells us that they are going to be the same when the show ends.

Some people never change, and there is a good chance that when the trio walks out of the White Lotus, they will have forgotten the disagreements that had started to rear their heads. If anything, the trauma of the shooting at the resort will only bring them together, and they will walk with a renewed sense of love, respect, and care for one another, even if it remains just as superficial as it was at the beginning of the season.

11. Mook and Sritala (Unlikely)

Talking about a highly likable character this season and not mentioning Mook would be unfair. So far, she has remained on the sidelines, only appearing to serve as a motivator for Gaitok to do better at his job and aspire for something better. While Gaitok gets involved in the drama of the Ratliff family when Tim steals his gun, Mook remains almost entirely untouched by the problems faced by the guests. The same, however, cannot be said for Sritala, who got entangled with Rick’s desire for revenge.

Still, there is too much about Sritala that has remained outside of view, and again, she isn’t exactly the kind of person whose death would send shockwaves through the fans. With all these factors in mind, it is safe to say that neither Mook nor Sritala are going to bear the brunt of the violence that is to break out in the resort. In the worst-case scenario, one or both of them might see the whole thing unfold in front of them. But even if they come in harm’s way, we can safely assume that neither of them will walk out in a body bag.

10. Belinda (Unlikely)

One of the most important characters this season has been Belinda, not simply because she returns from Season 1 but also because she ties the show to the drama of the second season by recognizing Greg, aka Gary. It is to save her that her son, Zion, walks towards the gunfire when the rest of the resort runs in the opposite direction. From the looks of the body, it is clear that it is not Belinda. The hair is nowhere near Belinda’s. Moreover, killing her would mean that Greg is getting away with murder again, and we want justice for Tanya McQuoid. Moreover, killing Belinda would be heavily unfair because all she has tried to do so far is the right thing, even for Tanya, who left her in the lurch after offering to make her dream a reality. Belinda needs to catch a break, and killing her would not serve any purpose.

9. Victoria Ratliff (Unlikely)

Appearances are important for Victoria Ratliff, and so is money. She even goes as far as to tell her husband that she’d rather die than be poor at this point. However, the wheels of the story might turn such that she would live long enough to see her husband go to prison and her children fall apart in front of her eyes. Tim’s secret is going to come out at some point, and when that does happen, there is a greater chance for Victoria to be the shooter rather than the one getting shot. In any case, she, too, has remained pretty dormant so far, and as much as it would be a joy to watch her unravel completely, it is most likely not going to culminate in her death.

8. Frank (Unlikely, But Could be a Surprise)

We love the curveballs ‘The White Lotus’ throws at us, and one of the best gifts it has given to the fans is the casting of Sam Rockwell as Frank. This is the character that no one saw coming, and over the course of three episodes, in his brief appearance each time, Frank establishes himself as a highly interesting, if not lovable, character who has yet to set foot inside the resort. The last we see of him is getting indulged in a cocaine-fuelled party, which sees him returning to his old ways, one that he turned away from after a trying journey. While there is a good chance that he might stay in Bangkok, if he does come to the resort, he might wind up in a situation that may end with him floating dead in the water.

7. Gary AKA Greg (Unlikely, But Could be a Surprise)

Even though each season of ‘The White Lotus’ presents a new mystery, there is one thread that has kept all three seasons together, and that is Greg, aka Gary. Jon Gries is the only actor to show up in all three seasons so far, and with the fourth season on the horizon, the show’s creator might want to keep him around for the next season, especially if he wants to maintain the continuity that has been established so far. This is why there is a good chance that we may not see Gary getting his due just yet. However, he needs to pay for what he did to Tanya, and a payback is necessary. It only remains to be seen whether that payback will come in this season or if Mike White will leave that plot point for the next one.

6. Saxon Ratliff (Semi-Likely)

When Saxon comes to the White Lotus, he is brimming with confidence and knows exactly what he wants. He feels superior to his siblings and believes that all the girls in the world would be lining up to have sex with him. But all his illusions are slowly chipped away over the course of the season. By the penultimate episode, he can feel the world crashing around him. He seems to have engaged in a threesome with his younger brother, his father is clearly hiding something from him, and the girl that he has been chasing since day one has told him that he is soulless and having sex with him would be a worthless experience.

Meanwhile, Chelsea and Gary seem to want to turn him into a sex toy that they can use to strengthen their relationship. There is only so much a guy can take, which means that Saxon’s unraveling might be complete in the final episode. Does it mean he will die? With the track record of ‘The White Lotus’ with rich white douchebags, it seems that things might actually be working in Saxon’s favor, and he might yet survive this ordeal. However, how much it damages him further will be something to look forward to.

5. Lochlan Ratliff (Could be a Shocker)

One of the things that ‘The White Lotus’ does well is to leave the breadcrumbs for the audience right from the beginning, especially when it comes to its opening credits. It is interesting to note how the paintings corresponding to the actors’ names fit well with the characters they play in the show. Interestingly, the painting with Sam Nivola’s name, who plays Lochlan, has a man floating in the water. This could be a hint towards his eventual fate, which means that the floating dead body might belong to Lochy. It would be a sad thing for him to die like this, but there are several ways in which it could happen.

While there is the whole shooting in the resort thing, there is a chance that Lochy will die of the poison fruit mentioned in the first episode. Saxon has been obsessed with making smoothies and making Lochy drink them from the beginning. There is a good chance that one such smoothie, laced with the poison fruit, might be given to him, unintentionally or intentionally, which could lead to his death and his floating in the water. With all that has happened between the brothers, Saxon might flip a switch in his head and decide to kill his brother so that no one finds out about them. Then there is Tim Ratliff, ready to commit familicide, and while he hasn’t dreamt about killing Lochy yet, he is a man prone to making mistakes. Could it be that his next mistakes cost Lochy his life?

4. Chelsea or Rick (Likely, But Maybe Not)

The only character who has come close to dying twice so far is Chelsea. She was there when Valentin and his friends robbed the jewelry store and could have been shot to death. The next time, she got bit by a cobra and would have died if she hadn’t received help in thirty minutes. Interestingly, she has been obsessed with the idea of having a third brush with death, as bad luck comes in threes, according to her, and the finale might just give her that. But again, she is one of the innocent ones, and her death would be very unfair and undeserved. This is where Rick comes in.

Since the beginning of the show, he has been obsessed with the idea of getting revenge on the man who killed his father. We still don’t know what he does for a living, but from the looks of it, it seems that he might be into something criminal. With this in mind, it makes more sense that he should be the one to face a deadly situation next. The digging of two graves while embarking on the path of revenge might prove true for him, especially considering the fact that he left his father’s killer alive, who might come back to finish the job. This could lead both Rick and Chelsea in danger, and there is a possibility that he might sacrifice himself in trying to save her, finally displaying his love for her, which he has kept to himself for so long.

3. Timothy Ratliff (Likely)

While the shooting at the resort is set up as the main event at the beginning of the season, there is only a limited number of characters who actually get their hands on a gun. Timothy Ratliff is one of them, and what makes him even more dangerous is that he has thoughts of killing himself and his family in a dangerous progression. Due to the fraud that he committed back home, he is scared that his whole life is unraveling while he is on vacation with his family. At first, he thinks about killing himself. But then, this thought extends to his wife, Victoria, and then his son, Saxon. The only thing that keeps him from going forward with this murder-suicide is luck. By the time he comes around to actually go through the act, the gun is already gone. What if the finale gives Tim what he has wanted all along? He could very well be the floating body in the pond.

2. Valentin, Alexei, and Vlad (Most Likely)

Usually, the characters of ‘The White Lotus’ are presented as the victims of their own circumstances, which means that they aren’t necessarily evil. But in the third season, the show gives us villains, and rather interesting ones at that, in the form of Valentin and his friends Alexei and Vlad. First, they robbed the jewelry store at the resort, then Valentin stirred trouble between Jaclyn and Laurie, and then Alexei slept with Laurie and then asked her for money. In the penultimate episode, both Gaitok and Laurie discover their secret, which means that Valentin and his friends have the most to lose. There is a good chance that they will be behind the gunfire, or at least parts of it, and one or all of them are going to take some shots and, most likely, die.

1. Gaitok (Most Likely)

One of the most significant arcs this season has been of Gaitok, and it has mostly been about him trying not to be so incompetent that he gets fired. Talk about doing the bare minimum at your job or always messing things up one way or another, and Gaitok’s name is sure to come up. By the penultimate episode, even he starts to wonder if he doesn’t have what it takes to become a bodyguard because he believes in non-violence, but Mook tries to convince him that violence is justified if it is in self-defense. What if he takes this lesson to heart, and in the final episode, when the shooter(s) creates havoc in the resort, he tries to stop them by himself, wanting to come across as a hero for Mook while also trying to show his boss that he has what it takes to get the promotion, and ends up getting shot or killed?