Mike White Did Not Show the ‘White Lotus’ Season 3 Cast the Finale Before It Aired, Says Jason Isaacs

The White Lotus creator Mike White made sure that the cast had to wait to watch the finale like the rest of the world, according to season 3 star Jason Isaacs.

“We watched it all together last night, Mike wouldn’t show it to anybody beforehand,” Jason, 61, told Deadline about seeing the finale for the first time in an interview published on Monday, April 7. “It was a very strange night for all of us because not only were we watching the show, which we’re all fans of, although we’re in it, we’re also essentially saying goodbye and getting some closure on what’s been a year and a half long adventure.”

After noting that he and the cast were “terribly emotional” while watching the finale, Jason continued, “Everybody was a little bit like at the end of summer camp, although a bit too grown up for this to be true.”

“We were all crying and holding each other, wondering whether it was the emotion of the moment or whether it was the being moved by the story lines,” Jason said. “We were all a little bit shaky afterwards, and even at the end of the night when we said goodbye to each other.”

Jason appeared on season 3 as Timothy Ratliff, the patriarch of the Ratliff family. Throughout the season, fans watched Timothy grapple with suicidal thoughts as he learned that he lost his family’s money. He reached a pivotal moment during the Sunday, April 6, finale when he considered killing himself and his family, though he ultimately didn’t go through with the plan.

While he stopped most of his family members from drinking a poisonous cocktail he made, Timothy realized his youngest son, Lochlan (played by Sam Nivola), possibly poisoned himself when he drank the remains of the cocktail. However, Lochlan eventually woke up while he was in his father’s arms after he was briefly unconscious.

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During his conversation with Deadline, Jason admitted that he had “never been involved in anything like” the White Lotus.

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“I think part of the reason is, and it’s what’s been amusing when young people talk about how it’s a new phenomenon, is that it’s old-fashioned weekly television. It’s engaged people in conversations and in community, which they may have lost in many other areas, we’re all disappeared into our silos and echo chambers,” he said. “It’s given people something to talk about and think about. They are, I wouldn’t say their morality tales, because Mike’s far too interesting [to] deliver redemptive stories but this season, particularly, he delved into areas of spirituality and serious existential questions that people weren’t necessarily prepared for in The White Lotus.”

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He said the cast and crew were “all moved and were far more contemplative” than they were “planning for” when they watched the finale together.

The Good Sam alum also reflected on the popularity of the show, saying that “it felt like the most talked about television show on the planet.”

“Now, granted, that’s because we were going around talking about it ourselves, but I’ve never been stopped so many times in the street or airports and by such a massively different group of people everywhere we go,” Jason shared. “It feels, in a world where there’s some pretty challenging things happening, dark clouds are gathering, and we’re also worried about the future, like a very, very welcome distraction.”