Duke University Fights Back Against Unauthorized Logo Use in The White Lotus

Content warning: this article includes mentions of suicide and suicidal ideation.

Duke University thinks The White Lotus is failing on its messaging.

Actually, the school, which boasts notable alumni such as Jason Isaacs and Patrick Schwarzenegger’s father-son characters from the HBO series, has requested that their emblem be completely omitted from any clothing used in the show.

In a statement to NBC News, Duke University’s vice president for communications, marketing, and public affairs, Frank Tramble, stated that the university did not authorize the use of its emblem in “The White Lotus.” While Duke values artistic expression and creative narratives, characters who conspicuously wear clothing displaying Duke’s trademarked symbols can cause confusion and wrongly imply an endorsement or connection where none is present.

The North Carolina school, home to the fictional Ratliff family (portrayed by actors including Parker Posey, Jason, Patrick, Sam Nivola, and Sarah Catherine Hook), has expressed concerns about the depiction of scenes where the father’s character allegedly represented his college alma mater.

During the March 23rd episode of “The White Lotus,” Jason’s character starts pondering and eventually encounters dreams and nightmares related to taking his own life due to mounting legal and financial issues that he is facing.

In a particular moment, he dons a gray T-shirt bearing the name “Duke” prominently on its front, all while contemplating self-harm.

The White Lotus not only utilizes our brand without consent, but in our opinion, employs it in disturbing visuals that do not align with our values or identity. The series crosses a line, especially considering its depiction.” Furthermore, the university added, “Suicide is the second most common cause of death among college students. With the show’s imagery being extensively shared on social media platforms, we are leveraging our brand to raise awareness about mental health and emphasize that help is accessible.

Recently, he shared that his admiration stems primarily from feelings of insecurity. He doesn’t gaze at his siblings out of physical allure, but rather out of a desire to understand and emulate their character. He seeks ways to relate to them as he navigates his own path to self-discovery.

Following his remark that Saxon’s main purpose in life is earning money and finding romantic encounters, Sam continued, “The object on the boat represents Lochlan’s sadly misguided effort to imitate Saxon’s persona and establish some connection. It was obviously a failed attempt to strike up something in that domain.

For more on the cast behind this season, keep reading.

I’ve attempted to contact Duke, HBO, and representatives for Mike White for their insights, but I haven’t received a response as of now.

The third installment of “The White Lotus,” now taking place in Thailand, hasn’t been free from debate or criticism.

Indeed, one intriguing plotline in the series is rooted in the Ratliff family as well. It involves the unconventional relationship of brothers Saxon (Patrick) and Lochlan (Sam), along with model Charlotte Le Bon (Charlotte Le Bon). This relationship, it should be noted, is a romantic threesome, causing quite a stir among viewers.

In response, Sam has taken it upon himself to examine and clarify the questionable sequence, where he pondered over the driving force behind his character’s actions.

In a recent interview with Variety, he expressed that his admiration for his siblings stems from a feeling of insecurity. This isn’t about physical attraction, but rather about understanding who he will grow into and trying to connect with them however possible.

Here’s my take as a lifestyle expert: After discovering Saxon’s main life goals revolve around amassing wealth and romantic encounters, Sam remarked that Lochlan’s endeavor on the boat was unfortunately a misguided attempt to emulate Saxon’s reputation as the ‘seduction guru’. Essentially, it was a bold yet unsuccessful move aimed at bridging a connection.

For more on the cast behind this season, keep reading.

What do you think of that? The artist commonly known simply as Lisa transitioned from being a global rockstar with the K-pop group Blackpink (alongside members Jisoo, Jennie and Rosé) to putting on the White Lotus staff uniform for her grand debut as Mook.

It appears that Lucius Malfoy from Harry Potter seems to have missed the train to Hogwarts and ended up at The White Lotus resort. To clarify: Although he no longer sports the luxurious blonde hair, the Harry Potter actor is making a comeback on our screens as another high-class character, this time portraying Timothy Ratliff, a “prosperous businessman holidaying with his wife and three kids.

I’ve recently graced the screens of popular TV series such as Robot Chicken, The Great, Sex Education, and most notably, White Lotus, sharing the limelight with my esteemed co-star Aimee Lou Wood.

Instead of shouting when you come across it, note that Posey, who portrays Timothy’s wife Victoria Ratliff, might seem familiar to you from her roles in the films “Superman Returns,” “Blade: Trinity,” “Scream 3” and “Dazed and Confused.” She has also made appearances on various TV series such as “Parks and Recreation,” “New Girl,” “Portlandia” and “Search Party.

However, true rom-com enthusiasts would recognize her as Patricia Eden, Tom Hanks’ girlfriend in the 1998 beloved film “You’ve Got Mail,” where she starred as his character, Joe Fox.

Although he is primarily recognized from family snapshots as the son of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, he has previously established a reputation for himself in shows like Gen V, The Terminal List, The Staircase, and now portrays Saxon Ratliff in season three.

Before playing the role of Piper, Ratliffs’ daughter, Hook had previously dabbled in horror and fantasy genres. She played Debbie Glatzel in “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It”, Juliette Fairmont in “First Kill” and Elena Milak in “Monsterland”.

Besides recognizing her from the 2024 reboot of “Cruel Intentions” as Caroline Merteuil, you might also be familiar with her from Ryan Murphy’s cinematic universe where she portrayed Catherine Allday Davis in “Impeachment: American Crime Story”, a series focusing on the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Nivola, currently in a relationship with Iris Apatow, daughter of Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann, joins the Ratliff family as the character Lochlan. However, prior to his Thailand adventures, he was part of another series revolving around a wealthy beach-going family: “The Perfect Couple”, where he portrayed Will Winbury, the child of Greer and Tag Winbury, played by Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber respectively. Notably, Nivola also shared screen time with Meghann Fahy, known for her role in “White Lotus” as Daphne Sullivan in its second season and later as Merritt Monaco on “The Perfect Couple”.

Apart from his roles, Nivola has starred alongside Adam Driver in “White Noise”, Bradley Cooper in “Maestro”, and Anne Hathaway in either “With” or “In” a different movie.

As a lifestyle aficionado, I must say that fans of “White Lotus” might recall me from season one where I breathed life into the character of Belinda, the spa guru in Maui. Excitingly, I’m set to reprise this role for season three! Moreover, my acting talents have adorned various screens in shows like “Insecure”, “Wonka”, “A Year and Change”, and “Love, Simon”. Notably, I also contributed my comedic prowess to “Saturday Night Live” as a writer from 2014 to 2015.

The actress who played Iron Man’s character is now joining the cast of The White Lotus to play Kate, having previously portrayed Christine Everhart in the Marvel series. Notably, she recently appeared in Palm Royale as Dinah Donahue and in Jupiter’s Legacy as Grace Kennedy-Sampson.

As a devoted admirer, I find myself stepping into the limelight, much like during my Gilded Age stint, but this time assuming the character of Laurie. You might recognize me from The Sinner, Fargo, and The Leftovers, and now I’m excited to embark on a new journey—joining friends Kate and Jaclyn for an exhilarating girls’ trip in Thailand, as depicted in the upcoming season.

In her role as Jaclyn on “The White Lotus,” Monaghan is indeed a television personality in real life. She’s graced our screens before, appearing in shows like “True Detective,” “Bad Monkey,” “Messiah,” and “The Path.” On the silver screen, she has starred as Julia in “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” and Angie Genaro in “Gone Baby Gone.

You’ll have a sense of validation, as Goggins does seem recognizable to you. Besides appearing in two movies directed by Quentin Tarantino (as Billy Crash in “Django Unchained” and Sheriff Chris Mannix in “The Hateful Eight”), he is also widely recognized for portraying Boyd Crowder on the TV show “Justified” from 2010 to 2015.

In the third season, a versatile British actress takes up a role, portraying the free-spirited character Chelsea. She engages in an intriguing age-gap relationship with Rick Hatchett, played by Goggins. Despite her notable performance as Aimee Gibbs on Netflix’s Sex Education , she has also made appearances in other productions like Seize Them! and Daddy Issues.

For over five decades, her acting career has spanned back to 1975 with her debut role in “Grounded God”. More recently, she played the character Prani Chiraanan in the series “In Family We Trust” in 2018.

This ex-military singer has acted in movies such as “Mechanic: Resurrection”, “Skin Trade” and “Paradox”, and portrayed the character Pao on the TV show “Farang”.

If you didn’t manage to identify the German actor within 13 minutes, let us jog your memory. He portrayed Rudolf Höss in “The Zone of Interest”, Reinhold Gräf in “Babylon Berlin”, and Georg Elser in “13 Minutes”.

2025-03-27 21:20

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