Fans confused as The White Lotus season 3 is tinted yellow

Whether you have noticed it or not, there is a simple reason why - and it's linked to season one. 

In television and film, there are lots of different ways you can convey a particular environment to viewers.

You might use landmarks, particular items of clothing, regional music, and perhaps even colour.

The White Lotus, branded as a holy grail for tourism, does all of these things. But, there is one element that viewers think has gone too far - and are wondering why that is.

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Image: HBO.

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Why is it… yellow?

Season one and season three of The White Lotus have one thing in common and, no, unfortunately I’m not talking about Jennifer Coolidge. They both have an overwhelmingly yellow tinge.

The show’s first season sees a group of wealthy Americans holiday at the exclusive White Lotus resort in Hawaii, where a warm colouring and depiction certainly makes sense.

However, when we made our way over to southern Italy for season two, that colouring had disappeared, with the team behind the show opting for a far more neutral imagining.

When the first teaser for season three was released last year, the return of this almost aggressive yellow was the first thing many fans noticed, with some calling it out for being too much.

Though many reviewers have said since that the colouring is nowhere near as abrasive in the actual show as it was predicted to be from the teaser, it’s still left many wondering why it would be that way in the first place.

Sure, Thailand is hot, but Italy certainly is too. So, why would it be different?

The yellow tint in The White Lotus, compared to the blue tint in Twilight. Image: HBO, Summit Entertainment.

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The impacts of colour grading

Colour grading is a significant part of putting a film together. Not only does it provide context to an environment or location, like Hawaii or Thailand, it can also give a piece of work an identity - think the blue wash in Twilight (I know you know what I’m talking about).

Most often, this is neutral, or at least more subtle. But, sometimes, contrasting and extreme colour grades can be used to pinpoint a place.

Frequently, places like the UK, the US and western Europe are seen in more neutral tones, eastern European and Scandinavian countries have a cooler wash, and locations such as the Middle East, South America, Asia and Africa receive warmer grades.

Is this problematic?

Well, it depends.

You’ll notice in a lot of films, that yellowy tint has become synonymous with not only heat and bright light, but also a low socioeconomic status, particularly when films or series’ are jumping between a location typically seen with a warm hue, with another typically having a cooler tone.

However, this isn’t necessarily intended to be a bad thing - at least not all the time.

Many directors and colourists assert that the correlation is just coincidental - that many countries in those warmer climates, and which therefore require warm colouring, happen to be developing countries. But, there’s no intention to cement any stereotypes regarding the Global South.

Just as many, though, particularly in recent years, have begun to disagree with this, calling the default ‘Mexico filter’ - well-known enough to have its own Wikipedia page, and seen in films like Breaking Bad, Traffic, Saw X and Teen Wolf - lazy, degrading, and a too-easily justified way of pushing negative stereotypes.

So, next time you watch a film or movie with unique colouring, have a think about why that might be.

Originally published as Fans confused as The White Lotus season 3 is tinted yellow