Listen, this series of The White Lotus has been challenging to watch. Namely because of the jump-scare incest moments peppered throughout the season. Just when you think you're at the end of this topical thread, it keeps on going and going. Now, if we know the show's creator Mike White and the previous narratives, we're hurtling towards a wider point... but what could it be?
The White Lotus starPatrick Schwarzenegger, who plays Saxon Ratliff, has shared his take in the wake of a explicit scene with his fictional younger brother Lochlan, played by Sam Nivola. The pair let loose during a Full Moon party and found themselves in a threesome with another character kissing one another and more. In last week's episode, we saw Saxon battling flashbacks to this moment and looking visibly queasy every time these graphic memories came up.
Schwarzenegger has opened up about shooting it, telling C Magazine he embraced the character and White's vision. 'I’m not saying that scene was the most fun, but it’s fun to push yourself and put yourself in uncomfortable positions because then you learn,' he said.
When it comes to the incest storyline, he had a thoughtful take on the wider message behind it. He believes it's exploring 'what you are if everything you thought defined you was taken away. That happens to Saxon and his dad.'
What is the meaning behind the incest storyline on The White Lotus?
In an interview with IndieWire, he opened up more. 'This moment that happens between the brothers, how I see it, is kind of like in this Buddhist ideology of both of them getting reborn into different people, into different levels of power in their relationship and in the family dynamic. Saxon becomes a new person after this. He’s now at the lower half of the totem pole, and he no longer exerts this power over Lochlan. Everything that he stood for, everything that he’s been talking about, has now been flipped on its head, and he really is internalizing and questioning everything.'
Power is a common theme throughout The White Lotus, with the first series exploring the power dynamics between rich white tourists and Hawaiian locals and people of colour, while the following one tackled the power dynamics in sexual relationships.
It's clear that after that threesome, the once arrogant and alpha Saxon has crumbled. The man who once strutted into the hotel, eyeing up every woman as a conquest, has now become shaky, trembling at the mere sight of anyone. His sexuality was the source of his personal power. Now that's become a source of pain. Could we see him lose his grip of reality and become this series' killer? Or are we just witnessing his downfall? With only the finale left, these pressing questions are becoming even more important.