“The White Lotus” composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer is leaving the HBO anthology series after experiencing creative disagreements with the show’s team since Season 1, he told the New York Times in a new interview.
โThe White Lotusโ theme song has been composed by Tapia de Veer since Season 1, and it’s become one of the hallmarks of the show.
The first two theme songs featured unique spins on a similar melody, composed of a series of trilling vocals, with the first striking an ominous, tropical tone and the second, a vivacious, Italian beat.
But when Season 3 premiered Feb. 16, some viewers checking in to “The White Lotus” expressed initial disappointment at the new theme song. Season 3’s song, titled “Enlightenment,” shirked the familiar vocals for an ethereal, instrument driven song that divided fans โย with some describing it as “spellbinding” and others demanding “justice.”
โJail for whoever made the decision to change โWhite Lotusโ theme song,โ one personย wrote on TikTokย as the opening credits played on a TV.
โMy disappointment when I didnโt hear this theme song,โ anotherย said. โOkay I was ready to dance… I donโt like this new theme song.โ
Tapia de Veer reacted to the backlash while speaking with the Times for an article that published April 2, noting of the vocals, “I donโt think everybody was really aware of how attached people were to the ooh-loo-loo-loos.”
He said after the season premiered, “I had TMZ calling me, even people from England and from France, because they wanted some kind of statement about the theme. People are furious about the change of the theme, and I thought that was interesting.”
Tapia de Veer said he responded by telling a producer to give fans an extended version of the theme song, “because people will explode if they realize that it was going there anyway.”
“He thought it was a good idea. But then Mike (White, show creator and writer) cut that โ he wasnโt happy about that,” Tapia de Veer said.
TODAY.com has reached out to HBO and representatives for White for comment but did not immediately hear back.
On March 19, Tapia de Veer uploaded the uncut version to his YouTube channel anyway.
“I mean, at that point, we already had our last fight forever, I think. So he was just saying no to anything. So I justย uploaded that to my YouTube,” he told the Times.
The comment section of the video is filled with praise for the longer version of the theme song.
“Anyone else moved to almost tears and definitely goosebumps when the old theme comes in after two minutes?” one viewer said.
“THE HULULULUS ARE SENDING ME TO HEAVEN,” another wrote.
In the interview, Tapia de Veer also described disagreements that extend beyond Season 3. He said he was “on the phone” with a producer “all the time, and she was trying to convince Mike about this theme, because he didnโt want the theme.”
The composer said White’s original vision for the song was comparable to “something you would listen to in Ibiza,” adding, “thereโs literally no edge to it.”
“I just stuck to what I was doing,” he said. “And when I was giving versions, it was still the same thing: There were still crazy people and screaming and stuff like that. From there, it became this weird relationship of, How do I pass all this weird music into the show?”
Reflecting on his time on the show, he called it a “good struggle.” Tapia de Veer notably won three Emmys for his work on “The White Lotus.”
“That is the main thing that Iโm most happy about โ it was worth all the tension and almost forcing the music into the show, in a way, because I didnโt have that many allies in there,” he said.
He confirmed that he would not return for Season 4 of “The White Lotus,” which was greenlit before Season 3 premiered, per Variety.
“This is your last season, for sure?” the Times asked.
“Yeah, yeah. For sure,” he responded.
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