The White Lotus, HBO’s dark satire of the super-rich, has taken viewers (and the Emmys) by storm since its 2021 premiere. The show’s soundtrack is practically a supporting character thanks to award-winning composer Cristóbal Tapia de Veer. However, season 4 might sound very different. Tapia de Veer recently announced he won’t return due to ongoing creative clashes with the show’s creator and director.
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‘White Lotus’ Composer Says Trouble in Paradise Dates Back to Season 1
Fittingly, Chilean-Canadian composer Cristóbal Tapia de Veer, 51, likens the tension with White Lotus creator Mike White to that of “a rock n’ roll band story.”
“I was like, OK, this is like a rock band I’ve been in before where the guitar player doesn’t understand the singer at all,’” he told The New York Times in an interview published Wednesday, April 2.
the guy who makes the White Lotus themes just did an interview with the NYT announcing that he's leaving the show because of how Mike White wanted the music and released the "uncut" version of the season 3 theme that includes the extension of the beat drop we all wanted lol pic.twitter.com/PJi7oWRVzc
— manny (@mannyfidel) April 3, 2025
This conflict dates back to Season 1, Tapia de Veer said. The show’s creative team repeatedly requested a “more upbeat and less experimental” soundtrack. For example, the Emmy-winning composer says that White wanted a “clubby, chill, sexy” score for Season 1, “like something you would listen to in Ibiza.”
“And there’s literally no edge to it,” Tapia de Veer said. “It’s a good song; it’s nice music. There’s just absolutely no — whatever you find in the “White Lotus” music, the relationships with the characters — there’s none of that. It’s just nice background music.”
HBO representatives declined to comment.
Composer Plugs Unedited Season 3 Theme
When The White Lotus kicked off its third season on Feb. 16, viewers took to social media to express their displeasure with the new theme song.
White Lotus changing their intro theme???? Why???? pic.twitter.com/UiCHJjx9LJ
— Techno Gatsby (@djclubberlang) February 17, 2025
Tapia de Veer, who also scored the British series Utopia and the 2024 erotic thriller Babygirl, recalled his phone flooding with complaints about the latest theme song. He told NYT that he suggested releasing a longer version, but White refused.
“I mean, at that point, we already had our last fight forever, I think,” Tapia de Veer said. “So he was just saying no to anything. So I just uploaded that to my YouTube.”
Featured image by CHANAKARN LAOSARAKHAM/AFP via Getty Images
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