The White Lotus, the HBO series created, written and directed by Mike White (available on demand and in streaming on Sky and Now) is coming to Sicily to shoot new episodes. While the first six episodes narrated a week in the life of the staff and guests at a Hawaiian resort, the second season (7 episodes) changes setting and moves to another hotel in the fictional “White Lotus” hotel chain: the San Domenico Palace in Taormina.
Jennifer Coolidge returns as Tanya McQuoid with Haley Lu Richardson as Portia, a young employee who travels with her; F. Murray Abraham, Michael Imperioli and Adam DiMarco play respectively Bert, Dominic and Elbie Di Grasso, father, son and grandson holidaying together; Tom Hollander is Quentin, an English expat on holiday with friends. Other guests include Cameron and Daphne Babcock (Theo James and Meghann Fahy) who are travelling with Ethan and Harper Spiller (Will Sharpe and Aubrey Plaza). Leo Woodall plays Jack, a charismatic resort guest. The cast also includes Italian actors with Sabrina Impacciatore as the manager of the new hotel, Beatrice Grannò and Simona Tabasco.
The shoot which is presumed to continue until Easter has been estimated to bring over €2M to the island, for the buyout of hotels and villas for cast and crew, plus takings from restaurants, bars and shops. In total, the American production could leave up to €5M in the region in addition to the return in visibility for all the settings used in the season, including places outside the resort at the heart of the story.