©The Hollywood Reporter - MaxGiven that the finale — which featured the deaths of several characters in a shooting that was announced in the season’s opening minutes — is the series’ biggest episode yet, it naturally surpassed previous season finales in viewership. Sunday’s episode was about 50 percent bigger than the season two finale in December 2022, which drew 4.1 million viewers on its first night, and more than tripled the 1.9 million viewers of the first season finale.
Season three also had The White Lotus’ most-watched premiere to date, with 2.4 million viewers on its first night across all platforms (including the first airing on HBO, reruns, and streaming on Max). The season three premiere episode is approaching 20 million viewers, according to HBO.
The season as a whole is averaging 16 million viewers in the U.S., according to HBO, surpassing the 15.5 million viewers for season two. Viewership for season three will continue to climb for a while, as HBO measures the series’ cross-platform performance 90 days after its premiere. The White Lotus is up 53 days in that period for season three at the time of publication.
HBO has already ordered a fourth season of the series, which is from creator-writer-director and executive producer Mike White. David Bernad and Mark Kamine are also executive producers. In a cover story for The Hollywood Reporter, White hinted that the gears for season four were starting to turn, though he hasn't written anything yet. "There's already pressure from HBO [for season four]. If they have something they're optimistic about, they want to put it out there," he said. "We were supposed to start scouting in April, and I was like, 'Guys, I haven't been home in three years.'"
