The White Lotus Season 2 finale said goodbye to a character just as beloved as its wild theme song, Tanya McQuoid. The death of Jennifer Coolidge’s beloved character brought a tragic end to her two-season arc, but even in death, there’s speculation that Tanya’s story will live on in Season 3. Obviously, we know her husband Greg is still around, and some might be overlooking a very important character tied to all of this, her assistant Portia, played by Haley Lu Richardson.
Portia was, at times, more in the story than Tanya, and given the events of Season 2, there’s an opportunity to resolve her story in Season 3. With plenty of time before Season 3, here are some of the ways The White Lotus could and should resolve her story in the upcoming season.
But Wait, Why Resolve Portia’s Story?
Out of all the characters left at the end of The White Lotus Season 2, Portia has the most potential for an interesting story in the future. She’s linked up with Albie, which solves the problem of her being cash-strapped and unable to go on a fancy vacation ever again, and she also knows enough to know Tanya was likely murdered thanks to Greg.
Portia can move this story into Season 3 and, most importantly, help expose Greg as a terrible person. Now that we have that resolved let’s get back into ways she might appear in the future.
Portia Could Be Targeted By Greg
Tanya is dead, and at the moment, it seems incredibly likely that Greg hired his old friend Quentin and his cohorts to make it happen. Greg was successful in getting his wife killed, though with the multiple dead bodies found on the yacht and her being recovered as well, it’s sure to be investigated. A murder of this level of intrigue would be of national attention, and the fact Tanya was a well-known heiress would make this a story worldwide.
The level of attention on Tanya’s death certainly would make Greg uncomfortable, especially considering an investigator might work out his relationship with Quentin quicker than Tanya did. Plus, there are two people who know exactly what happened and could tell the story to authorities if asked. Jack and Portia both were aware of the plot, but Greg likely only knew and could find Portia.
Greg was already bold enough to arrange for his wife to be killed. I don’t think it’s at all wild to assume he wouldn’t seek out someone to handle Portia. The only real downside of this direction is that whatever we’d learn about Portia would likely be mentioned offscreen, as we’ve yet to see scenes take place out of a White Lotus resort. With that said, wouldn’t it be wild to see Greg at the airport waiting to identify Tanya’s body and see Portia getting off the plane?
Portia Might Be A Person Of Interest In Tanya’s Death
The White Lotus Season 2 finale ended with Portia exchanging numbers with Albie, and there was a sense she would get a happy ending. It’s a nice thought, but if we’re looking at what would happen in reality, it doesn’t seem likely Portia would ever get out of that airport. Let's remember, she was attempting to board a plane without checking out of her resort the same morning her employer was pulled from the ocean.
Something tells me the Italian authorities would want to at least talk to her, if not more. As it stands right now, she’s the only person officially linked to Tanya in regard to official records, and the way she seemingly tried to make a quick exit out of Italy would look super suspicious to the casual outsider. Could Portia be taken in as a person of interest in this murder case?
If Portia were detained in Italy, there’d be a chance she wouldn’t be in The White Lotus Season 3, as it’s already hinted to take place somewhere in the East, like Asia. What if, though, Portia went to another White Lotus with Albie to escape the attention, only to run into true crime-obsessed patrons who wanted details on the crime? Then again, if someone is a person of interest in a murder investigation, would they be allowed to travel abroad? Perhaps i need to think about this one a bit more.
Portia Could Run Into Greg At Another White Lotus
Let’s envision a scenario in which Portia and Greg don’t run into each other at the airport, and she ends up in a relationship with Albie. Later on, maybe they decide on a vacation to Asia, and guess who they run into when they arrive? Surprise Greg and Portia are staying at the same resort, which could create a very interesting story for Season 3.
Neither one would be interested in that happening, especially if some time passed and they managed to stay out of each other’s lives beyond that. And, the odds of someone like Greg and Portia ever vacationing in the same spot at the same time, it’s hard to imagine they’d ever cross paths again, much less overseas, if they wanted to stay away from each other.
The White Lotus is a fictional show, though, and given that Tanya and Greg’s story is the only connective tissue between Season 1 and 2, one would think it’ll continue in some way in Season 3. Jon Gries’ Greg seems like a given to return based on his connection to Tanya, but if Greg is coming back, I’d love to see Portia pop up as well.
Portia Might Never Be Heard From Again
The White Lotus is an amazing show with plenty of reasons why people should watch it, but there is one thing about it that I can’t stand. The show left a lot of loose threads in Season 1 plots, and while Season 2 did a better job, there were still some unresolved questions fans were left with. Like, it’s a real problem for me that were on the way to Season 3, and I’m still wondering why the Pattons ended up staying together!
I say all that to remind myself, as well as viewers hoping for more Portia, that there’s a definite possibility that The White Lotus will never mention her again. Season 3 might play from start to finish, and we still won’t have any more information on Portia than we had at the end of Season 2.
Part of loving this show also means acknowledging that there will be things that happen, and we’ll never get an explanation for them. It’s possible that The White Lotus’ crew decides that Portia deserves a happy ending after escaping a potentially terrible fate in Italy, and the door is shut there. I would hate for that to be true, but it’s a reality we all should get comfortable with, just in case.
It’s going to be a little bit of a wait before The White Lotus Season 3 is back on HBO, so be sure to use that HBO Max subscription to binge Seasons 1 and 2 in the meantime. Also, keep those fingers and toes crossed for more returning characters in Season 3, or at least a couple to keep things moving.
