‘The White Lotus’ Season 3 finally reveals why Rick’s in Thailand

Rick Hatchett (Walton Goggins) has been brooding all over The White Lotus this season, throwing full buckets over his girlfriend Chelsea’s (Aimee Lou Wood) attempts at holiday fun and dropping a surprise mystery Bangkok trip into their schedule — one he’ll take alone.

But now, after Season 3, episode 4, we’ve got a strong idea about why they’re actually in Thailand at all — and it’s not just to have an expensive holiday. Let’s get into why Rick chose this particular White Lotus and what his real agenda is.

What happens in The White Lotus Season 3, episode 4?

It all comes out on the boat.
Credit: Fabio Lovino / HBO

During the guests’ cruise around the islands on Greg’s (Jon Gries) superyacht, Chelsea hits her limit of Rick’s unrelenting gloom. Pulling him aside on deck, she draws a proverbial line in the sand and demands her secretive partner let her in or she’s out. When Rick responds asking what Chelsea would like to know, she starts with the question we all have: “Why are we here? What’s in Bangkok?”

After resisting, Rick finally tells the truth: “We’re here because the fuckin’ dude who murdered my father owns this hotel.”

OK!

What do we know about Rick’s father’s murder?

The details of Rick’s father’s death come up during his stress management session with spiritual counsellor and meditation teacher Dr. Amrita (Shalini Peiris) in episode 2. Here, Rick reveals that his father was murdered before he was born, a loss that forms the core of his seemingly unlawful life choices.

In episode 4, Rick tells Chelsea that while he never knew his father, he knew him to be a “do-gooder” who was in Thailand when he suddenly disappeared in suspicious circumstances. “He came to Thailand to help people,” Rick says on the boat. “He was trying to help these locals keep a shitty American from stealing their land — I really don’t know all the details. But my father was here trying to do the right thing, and one day he disappeared. They never found him.”

We also learn in episode 4 that Rick’s mother, who died when he was 10 from a drug overdose, gave him the name of his father’s murderer on her deathbed. And that name? Jim Hollinger.

Who is Jim Hollinger?

We’ve seen Rick staring at glamorous hotel owner, wellness author, and famous singer Sritala (Lek Patravadi) since arriving at the White Lotus, and he’s not hid his disappointment over her husband’s absence at the hotel.

When Rick and Chelsea first arrive in episode 1, Mook (Lisa / Lalisa Manobal) confirms to Rick that the owners of the hotel are Sritala and her American husband, Jim Hollinger. It’s the name Rick’s had etched in his brain since his traumatic childhood, and one that brought him here. Having read it in the news, Rick knew Hollinger was in hospital on the island, but unfortunately he’s one day late to meet the man — Hollinger flew to Bangkok the day before Rick arrived.

All we really know about Hollinger is that he’s a powerful American in Thailand, who owns the White Lotus “and half of Thailand” according to Rick. Did he murder Rick’s father for meddling in a land grab? Or is there more to the story?

What’s Rick going to do in Bangkok?

Essentially, as Chelsea says to Rick on the yacht, “Is this a bit ‘You killed my father, prepare to die?’“

Considering Rick’s the type of erratic guy who’ll free a bunch of venomous snakes while high, anything’s possible once Rick catches up to Hollinger in Bangkok. Despite Chelsea’s pleas for Rick not to “do something stupid,” Rick says he simply wants to look the man who murdered his father in the face. But will he move beyond confrontation and exact revenge?

“The guy ruined my life from day one. He doesn’t have to answer to me?” asks Rick.

“You’re not going to just talk to him are you? I know you, Rick, this is what you do,” replies Chelsea, alluding to his possibly violent or criminal past. In episode 1, Rick reminds Chelsea he “can’t go to Australia,” indicating he’d be arrested there, but it’s unclear exactly how much she knows about his lucrative line of work.

One notable moment we don’t yet have answers for lies in episode 3, when Rick introduces himself to Sritala at breakfast. Pretending to be a producer and procuring her business card, he promises a fake meeting with a director in Bangkok, where she is travelling to join her husband. We’re thinking this might be a card Rick has to play in future episodes?

The big question is, what exactly will Rick do when he finds Jim Hollinger in Bangkok? Chelsea tells Rick he’s a “victim of his own decisions” during their first dinner at the White Lotus — will he remain on-brand?

The White Lotus is streaming now on Max, with new episodes dropping weekly at 9 p.m. ET Sundays on HBO.