The latest season of the White Lotus is one that feels incredibly truthful in it’s depiction of female friendships.
A trio of women can easily draw comparisons to good and evil. The three witches in Macbeth. The Witches of Eastwick. Charlies’ Angels. The trio seen in The White Lotus, Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie, are a hot and complex cauldron of gushing love and laughter peppered with bitterness, nasty asides, and disloyalty. Many female viewers may feel the jaw-dropping moment of recognition where they see themselves and their own friends in them, the familiar behaviour of “besties” who can often be “beasties.”
Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie are in Thailand on vacation, staying at the luxurious White Lotus resort. They want to catch up on their friendship, since schooldays, where life has taken them on different adventures. Some have been successful, others a letdown, namely Laurie’s divorce and difficult relationship with her teenage daughter.
We learn that Jaclyn has paid for the trip, as she is now a successful actress. Nobody ever learns what she starred in. In The White Lotus Official Podcast, actress Michelle Monaghan, who plays Jaclyn, reveals that writer Mike White wanted this detail to remain ambiguous and even she doesn’t know her own claim to fame. The distribution of power unfolds like a beautiful lotus leaf, as we see Kate and Laurie regularly thanking Jaclyn for being their benefactor and Jaclyn shrugging them off with a coy smile, asking for nothing in return. Or does she? The constant admiration from her two friends seems part of the bargain, chirping how grateful they are to have her as their friend.
An uncomfortable conversation is had, in which they reminisce about a school play, where they had to form “one person.” Of course, Jaclyn was ‘the face’ whilst the other two took the parts of the ‘the legs and arms’. Mike White also shared that he wanted them to be a “blonde blob” – one vacuous entity, three entitled women living their best life, until the cracks start to appear and we see more depth. The dynamics are dynamite on screen. Three have cocktails, their golden tans glinting in the sunset. One pops back to the villa to get sunscreen. The two left behind snipe behind her back. Anyone who has faced passive-aggressive female conflict will feel a knot in their stomach when they hear the insincere chit-chat preceding with, “I love her so much, but…” Faux concern laces their whispery tones, two gossiping about one at every opportunity.
It’s clear that Jaclyn holds the power. She is physically beautiful, and her acting career means that many strangers around the resort recognise her and request their photo be taken with her, whilst Kate and Laurie are bystanders, smiling through snow-white teeth, their eyes tinged green with envy.
Their character traits are well established. Kate is the peacemaker. Laurie can be caustic and expresses disappointment easily. Kate sits on the fence, often repeating to one that “she has a point,” before turning to the other and saying the same. Her personal story is one of success for building a stable and financially comfortable home life in Texas and she is always immaculate and composed. Laurie, the breath of fresh air blowing through the trio, is recovering from a divorce and feels that becoming a mother isn’t the joyous event that she envisaged.
In a moment of betrayal, Jaclyn sleeps with White Lotus masseuse, Valentin, after attempting to set Laurie up with him. Why does Jaclyn do this? Simple, she can. She paid for the trip. She’s entitled. Right? “It’s not like you were in love with him?” she throws carelessly to Laurie, showing a lack of empathy to her miserable friend. Things come easily to Jaclyn. Kate has worked hard to become the elegant woman she is today. And Laurie is a mess. But they all know how to party and they throw themselves into vacation life with vigour, sneaking off site to a “real nightclub” with Valentin and his friends, and Laurie knows how to neck a beer with the boys.
On their final night, toasting their friendship, Jaclyn gushes, Kate smiles winsomely, again glazing each other with compliments, yet Laurie says with candour, “I was sad most of the time.” Their lipstick melts into their falling smiles. This is the moment of truth, where we finally understand these girls. Laurie declares that she accepts her flaws and presents them with a word that sums up their friendship. “Time,” she blurts out. As they stare in confusion she explains “we were there from the start and we are still here today.” As such, they are accepting of each of their idiosyncratic moments, without any judgment. They just, are.
For the first time, the oft repeated yet shallow three words, “I love you,” said every night before bed, are finally uttered to one another with sincerity. Jacyln, in a moment of epiphany, realises that these girls see her faults and yet she welcomes it. Whilst her public persona is subject to criticism about her beauty on any given day, this is irrelevant as she has two special people who truly see her, warts and all. Though let’s be real, Jacyln has very clear skin! Laurie, the weak link, has shown the two perfect friends that they can be real, and still be loved. They are not witches. They are not angels. They are friends, forever.
The interaction between them is compelling and addictive viewing. Women’s relationships are complex and confusing. We love each other as sisters, celebrating our wins, drying each other’s tears. However, schadenfreude can be our downfall, gossiping and revelling in each other’s troubles. But watching Jaclyn, Kate and Laurie has shown that forming a strong bond should never be underestimated, and that perfection is an illusion, whether on TV, Instagram or in real friendships.
Words by Monique Hershkorn
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