The White Lotus season 3 gave fans plenty to think about leading up to the finale, including who the killer might be. Several of the characters’ storylines lended plenty of ammunition to viewers regarding motives. However, in the end, only two of them ended up taking a life.
Warning: Spoilers for The White Lotus season 3 ahead!
Who Is the Killer in ‘The White Lotus’ Season 3?
After it was all said and done, Rick (Walton Goggins) was one of the killers in The White Lotus season 3. When Jim (Scott Glenn) returned to the hotel, he saw Rick and threatened him with a gun after insulting his mother. The remarks from Jim sent Rick over the edge and while Jim and his wife, Sritala (Patravadi Mejudhon), weren’t paying attention, Rick ambushed him and swiped the gun from his holster.
He fired two shots into Jim’s chest, killing him, but he received some shocking news when Sritala revealed that Jim actually was his father. A shootout with other security guards at the hotel ensued, and Rick shot both of them. However, he didn’t manage to take them out before Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) was struck by a bullet in the chest. Chelsea died in Rick’s arms and as he walked away carrying her, Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong) showed up with the gun that’s been haunting him the entire season.
Sritala pressured him into shooting Rick, who died from his wounds as he fell into the water holding Chelsea.
Fans Suspected Tim Ratliff Was Going to Kill Himself and His Family
Throughout The White Lotus season 3, fans became pretty set on Tim Ratliff, played by Jason Isaacs, taking himself and/or a family member or two out in the finale. Tim learned early on in season 3 that he was likely going to jail for unspecified crimes relating to his business which led to him crashing out for most of the episodes. Doped up on his wife Victoria’s (Parker Posey) Lorazepam, Tim had multiple visions and dreams about either shooting himself or his family members with the gun he stole from the security booth. However, it was clear that the gun was too obvious of a choice for creator Mike White.
Instead, viewers quickly latched on to the idea that Tim was going to use the poisonous fruit that was pointed out all the way back in episode 1 to make a smoothie that someone would drink. Tim’s oldest son, Saxon Ratliff (Patrick Schwarzenegger), made a point to make sure his younger brother, Lochlan Ratliff (Sam Nivola), drank the protein smoothie he concocted even though Lochlan protested that it tasted bad. Plus, if Saxon was in the kitchen area of the Ratliff family’s villa, he was using the blender. (Chekhov’s blender, if you will.) During The White Lotus season 3 finale trailer, Tim was seen asking about the fruit, hinting that it was going to come into play at some point.
Others Thought Gaitok Might Be the Killer in ‘The White Lotus’ Season 3
Gaitok proved himself to be kind over and over again throughout The White Lotus season 3, but his tempered personality also led to him being picked on and taken advantage of at his job and in his personal life. During the penultimate episode, Mook, played by BLACKPINK’s Lalisa Manobal, pointed out that she had hoped Gaitok was more ambitious than he had proved to be so far.
During the Muay Thai fights, Gaitok recognized the men who robbed the jewelry store at the hotel as friends of his coworker Valentin (Arnas Fedaravicius). Some viewers believed that the thieves would return to rob Jaclyn Lemon (Michelle Monaghan) and Gaitok would intervene in order to show Mook just how ambitious he really was.
One viewer on Reddit wrote, “Gaitok’s killer instinct is about to surface. Naively thinking it’ll win Mook over he is going to shoot Valentin (after he confronts him about the robbery). Or is it him who is going to die?”
