Out of ‘The White Lotus’ Mean Gossiping Trio, This Is Who Deserves Happiness the Most

In each of its three seasons, The White Lotus has never shied away from portraying complicated people. Even though some of the characters are a tad over the top (such as Jennifer Coolidge‘s Tanya McQuoid or Parker Posey‘s Victoria Ratliff), these fictional people actually do feel like they could exist in real life. Because of Mike White‘s ability to write characters that feel realistic, that means they’re also rich in complexity. And just like in real life, there are some characters that we’re rooting for…and others that we wouldn’t mind getting their comeuppance. In Season 3, it’s been hard to feel a huge amount of sympathy for the trio of friends vacationing in Thailand — Jaclyn (Michelle Monaghan), Kate (Leslie Bibb), and Laurie (Carrie Coon). But there is one of the three that will hopefully get a well-deserved happy ending.

The Three ‘White Lotus’ Friends Aren’t All That Likable

Carrie Coon, Leslie Bibb and Michelle Monaghan walk in market street in The White Lotus Season 3, Episode 4. — Image via MAX

From the moment we meet these three besties, it’s apparent that they aren’t the nicest ladies in the world. As the season has progressed, it has become more evident that it might even be a stretch to call these women friends. This is on account of all of the gossiping they do behind each other’s backs and the passive-aggressive comments they make to their faces. Jaclyn thrives on creating drama with her three friends, mostly because she’s stuck trying to recreate their youthful days. In last week’s episode, she even cheats on her husband with Valentin (Arnas Fedaravicius), who Laurie was clearly vibing with after making several comments about how Laurie should have a fling with him. Kate avoids forming any kind of deeper relationship with her friends because she prefers to keep everything surface-level. She’s unwilling to talk about her own issues or delve too deeply into problems in her personal life because that would result in her friends discovering her flaws. And Laurie tends to act a little wild and unfiltered when she drinks too much (which happens pretty frequently on this trip).

In this week’s episode, Laurie has an epiphany that they’re all exactly the same people they were in the tenth grade. This is such an accurate assessment of their friendship. Even though they’re well into adulthood, they continue to play out immature and hurtful behaviors because these are the roles they’ve filled since they were kids. Their triangle of friendship perpetually leaves someone out, and the one that gets left behind is the target of brutal gossip. They have no real loyalty to each other, and they don’t mind sharing judgments or criticisms about one another because it makes them feel better to tear each other down. Each episode digs further into their resentments, but it’s pretty clear that you wouldn’t necessarily want to be a part of this friend group.

Laurie Has Earned A Chance at Happiness on ‘The White Lotus’

There is a lot of backstabbing and cattiness that flows between them, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t someone in the group who deserves happiness. Out of the three gossip queens, Laurie is the person who seems like she might be a good friend when she’s out of this specific toxic triangle. She’s smart, honest, and funny, and she doesn’t seem as focused on retaining wealth and beauty as the other two women. Laurie also appears to be struggling the most emotionally, as evidenced by her heart-wrenching breakdown in Episode 1. The sobbing that occurs when Laurie sees her two friends gabbing without her on the first night in Thailand is a dead giveaway that our girl is extremely sad. We don’t know everything that’s happening with Laurie back home, but she has gone through a divorce and is raising her daughter on her own. She’s also hinted at being overworked in her position as a lawyer, which makes it even sadder that this vacation is turning into such a stressful one for her.

Patrick Schwarzenegger and Sam Nivola in The White Lotus

The Worst Part of the Ratliff Brothers’ ‘White Lotus’ Storyline Isn’t What You Think

The “brotherly love” was uncomfortable enough, but the reactions were worse.

White has written Laurie to feel the most worthy of sympathy in the trio. She tries to go with the flow with her friends, attempts to brush aside their mean-girl behavior, and is even capable of letting loose when Valentin takes them to a club. She has been trying to make the most of her vacation but is stuck with people who don’t truly care about her well-being. They make snide comments about her drinking instead of talking to her about what she’s really struggling with. Laurie has an openness that the other two women just don’t possess, which makes it easier to root for her. It seems like it’s only a matter of time until Laurie realizes that one of the reasons she’s so unhappy probably depends largely on the people she’s surrounding herself with. Laurie needs to finally let go of her past, even if that includes cutting ties with her oldest friends.

Carrie Coon Brings Laurie to Life in ‘The White Lotus’

Carrie Coon as Laurie having a drink while sitting with Leslie Bibb as Kate in The White Lotus Season 3 — Image via HBO

Although White has attempted to portray Laurie as the lonely, melancholic singleton of the group, it’s undeniable that she has a special charisma that shines through because of Coon’s beauty and immense talents. The actor, who is also starring in HBO’s The Gilded Age, displays a vast array of emotions on her face without ever saying a word. That means that we see Laurie go through a range of feelings in many of her interactions with her friends (which includes trying to hide her pain). After learning of Jaclyn’s betrayal, Laurie tries to brush off how hurt she is, but it’s clear by the way she keeps needling Jaclyn that she’s incredibly wounded by her actions. Because Coon is so adept at portraying a damaged heart, Laurie becomes someone we’re rooting for to rise above.

She’s not selfish like Jaclyn or a pot-stirrer like Kate, and she doesn’t live for the drama, which makes her easy to sympathize with. She copes the worst with seeing her other two friends bonding because she’s a lonely person, and she seems to have the biggest need for blowing off steam (indicated by the drinking and the shenanigans with Valentin and his friends). And it’s Coon’s intricate performance depicting all of these levels of humanity that makes Laurie utterly relatable. It’s also important to note that Laurie is not completely without fault. She does her fair share of gossiping, including harsh and unnecessary comments about Jaclyn’s looks. But instead of this coming from a place of spite, it’s clear that Laurie is feeling insecure about passive-aggressive remarks about Laurie’s appearance, especially after Jaclyn’s betrayal with Valentin. Laurie isn’t perfect by any means, but her actions stem from her pain.

There are only two episodes left in this season, and we already know that someone is not going to make it out of The White Lotus Resort alive. Laurie definitely doesn’t deserve to be the one killed off. Even though all signs are pointing to the trio’s friendship imploding, Laurie deserves to go home in one piece. She does seem to have a good heart (that is sometimes hidden by her regressing to her high school self), and the only way she can turn into the person she’s meant to be is to finally break free from this toxic friendship. Hopefully, it’s in the cards for Laurie to make it off the island safe and sound, because it would be hard to forgive White for giving this character a doomed fate she doesn’t deserve.

The White Lotus is streaming on HBO Max.