‘White Lotus’ Season 2 Ending Explained: Who Dies In The Season Finale?

The White Lotus Season 2 has promised HBO viewers at least three deaths by the end of the finale. We know that Daphne (Meghann Fahy) survives, as she is the guest who discovers a mysterious corpse while she takes one final dip in the sea. We also know that hotel manager Valentina (Sabrina Impacciatore) lives. She is seen not only frantically dealing with the body Daphne finds, but also reeling from her nemesis Rocco (Federico Ferrante) telling her that a couple more “guests” were found dead on the resort grounds. So who dies in The White Lotus Season 2 finale? Will creator Mike White actually kill off his muse Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) or will locals like Lucia (Simona Tabasco) and Mia (Beatrice Grannò) once again suffer at the guests’ whims?

HBO’s official preview for The White Lotus Season 2 teased a number of possible horrific outcomes for this year’s crop of characters. We saw that Ethan (Will Sharpe) was increasingly losing his cool at the thought of Cameron (Theo James) potentially sleeping with Harper (Aubrey Plaza), culminating in an apparent brawl in the water. We also learned that Tanya is increasing danger separated from assistant Portia (Haley Lu Richardson) and that Albie (Adam Di Marco) believes it’s his duty to “save” Lucia from her life in Sicily.

All these plot lines finally collided in The White Lotus Season 2 Episode 7 “Arrivederci.” We finally found out who died and why Quentin (Tom Hollander) seemingly was in love with “Cowboy” Greg (Jon Gries). Who was plotting against Tanya? Would Ethan lose his cool and kill? And was Lucia playing Albie this whole time?

Here’s everything you need to know about the ending of The White Lotus Season 2…starting with who died.

Who Dies in The White Lotus Season 2 Finale?

Tanya does indeed die, but not without putting up one hell of a fight. Over the course of the episode, both Tanya and Portia piece together separate clues that Greg has indeed been plotting with Quentin to stage her murder. Jack (Leo Woodall) has been hired by Quentin to keep Portia far from Tanya so mobster Niccoló (Stefano Gianino) could murder her at sea en route back to the hotel. Even though Jack steals Portia’s phone, she is able to take his and call Tanya who is on the yacht with Quentin et al. Together, the two women piece together the plot. That leaves both ladies, however, in the clutches of Team Greg/Quentin.

Once the yacht arrives close to Taormina, Quentin explains that Niccoló is coming aboard and will take her alone back to shore. Tanya loses her phone trying to call the mainland and has a darkly comic scene with the yacht driver in which she iconically says, “These gays, they’re trying to murder me.” (Lucille Bluth would be so proud.) When that doesn’t work, Tanya tries to delay her eventual trip with death. She sees that Niccoló has a black bag that he’s brought with him. She grabs it en route to the “powder room” and locks the door. In the bag is rope, duct tape, and a gun, thus confirming this is the plot.

Quentin and Niccoló realize Tanya has figured it out and bang on the door. When they push through, Tanya summons some sort of “Final Girl” energy. She keeps shooting and shooting her way out, teary-eyed and panicked the whole time. She kills Niccoló and Didier (Bruno Gouery) and gets Quentin in the back. Hugo (Paolo Camilli) escapes by diving into the water and swimming to shore. Tanya tries to get Quentin to reveal if Greg is cheating on her, but he says nothing.

Tanya then realizes she is stuck on the yacht. She sees the dingy and questions if she can make the jump. After a few awkward attempts, she says, “You’ve got this.” She, in fact, does not. She hits her head as she plunges into the water. After an operatic underwater death scene set to Puccini, we then learn she was the corpse Daphne discovered. The other dead “guests”? The murdered bodies on the yacht. Everyone else survives.

Jack drops Portia off at an airport in Catania and warns her not to return to the hotel or ask questions. We next see her donning a terrible disguise at the main Sicily airport where she reconnects with Albie, who reveals that Lucia did indeed extort him out of money. Portia asks Albie for his number and at least one happy thing happens.

Elsewhere Mia gets to keep her job at the White Lotus. Valentina has become more confident in herself and her sexuality. Dominic (Michael Imperioli) is able to reconnect with his wife. And, after beating Cameron up and spending a day with Daphne, Ethan finally f*cks Harper. They break the Moor statue in their love-making.

So Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya McQuoid-Hunt is the main character who dies in The White Lotus Season 2. Alas, that means she will not be going on to The White Lotus Season 3…