Just one episode into the new season, and fan theories about what’s next for The White Lotus are already starting to flood in thick and fast.

Meanwhile, some fans have already pointed out a connection between the award-winning series and another hit US show.

Episode one of The White Lotus’ third season introduced us to the Ratliffs, a wealthy Southern family headed up by Parker Posey and Jason Isaacs, with Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sam Nivola and Sarah Catherine Hook playing their on-screen children.

It didn’t take long for some viewers of the satirical comedy-drama to pick up that the surname “Ratliff” appeared in another show that originated on the US broadcaster HBO.

Back in 2022, The Staircase was adapted into a true crime drama series headed up by Colin Firth and Toni Collette.

The original documentary told the story of Michael Peterson, a writer who was initially convicted of murdering his wife Kathleen, only for the charge to be reduced to manslaughter seven years later after he submitted an Alford plea, after which he was freed.

In the drama – and, indeed, in real life – Peterson’s adopted daughters, played by Sophie Turner and Odessa Young, had the somewhat unusual surname Ratliff, which did not go unnoticed by White Lotus fans when the show’s new family members were introduced.

The similarities don’t end there, though, as the Ratliff family are revealed to be from Durham, North Carolina, the same Southern city in which the events depicted in The Staircase played out.

Oh, and then there’s the fact that two of the actors in the new season of The White Lotus – Parker Posey and Patrick Schwarzenegger – also appeared in the dramatised version of the original documentary The Staircase.

Exactly what this means remains to be seen, although some fans have their suspicions…

Earlier this week, fans picked up on another subtle detail in the White Lotus season opener, which some felt might tease something dark in the Ratliffs’ future.

The White Lotus continues on Monday on Sky and Now.