Greg Could Be Quentin’s Mysterious Cowboy in The White Lotus

Tanya’s budding friendship with the wealthy Quentin in Season 2 of HBO’s The White Lotus already hit quite the pothole last week when the former walked in on the latter in a compromising position with his nephew Jack… and it looks like there’s even more strife on the way.

Viewers will be aware that it was possible for Tanya to be swept off her feet by Quentin because her husband, Greg, was not exactly holding up his end of the romantic getaway bargain: not only has he been constantly sneaking away to make secret phone calls for the entire vacation, but then he became conspicuously absent just in time for Quentin’s arrival. While this may have seemed like a little bit of writerly contrivance on the part of showrunner Mike White, a fan theory actually speculates that Greg and Quentin really know each other.

In a vulnerable moment in Episode 5, Quentin shares the story with Tanya of how he has only ever been in love with one man: a heterosexual cowboy from his past. Then, in Episode 6, in the midst of a cocaine-fueled party, Tanya seems to have found a photo of a young Quentin with someone else—wearing a cowboy hat—who looks an awfully lot like Greg. We can’t say for sure just yet, but but he would be of the right age to fit the description.

Some fans have believed that Greg is the cowboy and is in cahoots with Quentin, having made himself scarce so that Quentin could swoop in and start to build a connection with Tanya as part of a scheme to swindle her out of her money. Which would be one hell of a depressing twist. In other words: quintessential White Lotus.

Philip Ellis is a freelance writer and journalist from the United Kingdom covering pop culture, relationships and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV.