You Might Be a Feminist And Still Hate This Character in The White Lotus
Not all female characters are worth applauding — and sometimes, that's the point.
White Lotus is not exactly the kind of show you watch to restore your faith in humanity; after all, there is a reason why this series inherited the Sunday slot from House of the Dragon on HBO. It's not that the characters are bad or morally gray; it's just that their actions don't match their words.
The second season introduces us to a number of new characters, including a girl named Portia, who is an assistant to Jennifer Coolidge's Tanya.
We know Tanya from Season 1, and she is the only character to make it to Season 2. As her assistant, Portia comes with her to the White Lotus Resort, but Tanya initially pushes her away as she tries to enjoy a romantic getaway with her husband Greg. Then, when Greg suddenly flies off to Denver for "urgent work matters" (yes, that translates into "seeing a mistress"), Tanya does an about-face and demands that Portia stay by her side at all times, even though Portia wants to hang out with Albie.
Albie is a nice guy-in fact, he is the most perfect example of a nice guy imaginable. Clearly disgusted with toxic masculinity and trying to move beyond outdated patriarchal attitudes, he tries to be respectful and polite while also making little nice gestures like saving a seat at the beach club or grabbing a couple of beers...only to be shunned by Portia in episode 4.
The way Portia treats Albie at the beginning of the season just drives fans crazy. You can be a feminist all you want, but at this point, Portia is just being mean and unlikable.
While some fans claim that Portia is technically still single and not committed to Albie, she still does not reject him outright and clearly keeps him as a "side boy". Moreover, she continues to make out with another guy right in front of Albie, even though Albie has done nothing to deserve that treatment.
It's not just Albie. The way Portia treats her boss is also mean. For several days during her trip to Italy (which Portia did not have to pay a dime for, we might remind you), she had little to do but put up with Tanya's occasional weird requests. And let's face it, Tanya is no Valentina, and her requests may be bizarre, but they're not hard to comply with.
"Portia getting a full-paid trip to italy and all she has to do is sit on a couch for an hour while her boss [naps] and she's acting like her life is so tough," Twitter user swiftlydunphy said.
The only thing fans can hope for now is that Albie does not get his feminist beliefs ruined by Portia's behavior. In the end, all men and women are different; and clearly, being a bad person is not an issue of gender at all.
New episodes of The White Lotus arrive on HBO Max every Sunday.