Here's how Mike White's Thailand & reality TV past impact The White Lotus

Mike White was eliminated in Thailand during his first time competing on 'The Amazing Race.'

Mike White was originally meant to compete in the 13th season of The Amazing Race along with fellow writer-director Jonathan Kasdan (a.k.a. Jon Kasdan). As Kasdan got cold feet, however, producers asked Mike if he'd like to compete paired up with his father, Mel White, on The Amazing Race season 14. And so, they did.

Mike and Mel competed in seven of 12 episodes ("Legs") of The Amazing Race 14. But what does that have to do with The White Lotus season 3, you ask? Well, the father-son duo was precisely eliminated in an episode where contestants arrived in Thailand for episode 7 (Leg 7) of the race.

That infamous seventh episode, titled "Gorilla? Gorilla?? Gorilla???", had contestants visiting the Phuket Zoo of Thailand — prominently known for its inclusion of monkeys, elephants, and tigers. Notably, the Phuket Zoo's "monkey shows" featured macaque monkeys doing tricks.

Generally speaking, macaque monkeys have been considered a "symbol of Thailand," as reported by The Guardian in 2024. However, that same Guardian report highlighted that "residents have had enough as monkeys resort to violence to get food."

The "Pit Stop" (end point) for Leg 7 of The Amazing Race 14 was the Wat Thep Nimit Temple — a Buddhist temple. As the last pair to arrive at the temple, Mike and Mel White were eliminated from the season upon arrival.

While no one is suggesting that White's entire perception of Thailand is based off of that one experience, it's interesting to see how many reference points from his last Leg of The Amazing Race have already shown up on The White Lotus season 3.

Mike White competed on 'Amazing Race' with his father, Mel White, who is gay.

Mike White's reality TV debut on The Amazing Race season 14 aired in 2009 on CBS. Mike (then 38 years old) paired up with his father, Mel White (then 68 years old), for the competition.

"Mel and Mike, father and son, from Virginia and Los Angeles," host Phil Keoghan narrated as the White father-son duo was introduced to the show.

"My dad and I are both writers. I wrote a movie called School of Rock," Mike White said in an intro montage. Mel White added, "I've been out as a gay man for 25 years."

While Mike has clarified over the years that he's bisexual, he noted at the time that "being gay and having a gay father definitely has its advantages."

"You don't feel like you're disappointing your parents since they beat you to the punch," Mike explained.

Mel White delivered an emotional speech about Mike White after their 'Amazing Race' elimination.

Mel and Mike White's run on The Amazing Race 14 came to an end during the seventh episode of the season, which took place in Thailand. They were the last pair to reach the "Pit Stop" (end point) of Leg 7, the Wat Thep Nimit Temple, meaning that they finished the race in sixth place overall.

"Mel and Mike, you are the last team to arrive," TAR host Phil Keoghan sadly declared. "I'm sorry to tell you: you have been eliminated from the race. I'm very sorry to see you go."

"It's been a great run, man," Mel replied.

Keoghan asked, "What's special about your son?"

Mike teased, "Keep it together dad."

"What's special about Mike?" Mel mused. "Just about everything I can think of. He's smart. He's wise. He's mature. This is my kid, and I've left something in the world that will make the world a better place."

Mike added in their exit interview on the show, "We've been father and son my whole life, but I don't think we've ever really been teammates. Being a teammate brings a whole different kind of camaraderie than you get in normal life, so that was a great gift that the race gave us."

Mike White subsequently competed on 'The Amazing Race 18' and 'Survivor: David vs. Goliath.'

In 2011, Mel (now 40 years old) and Mike (now 70 years old) got a second chance to compete on TAR season 18, dubbed The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business. Alas, this second chance did not go well for the duo and they were eliminated by episode 3.

Mike returned to reality TV in 2018 as a solo competitor on Survivor season 37, a.k.a. Survivor: David vs. Goliath. This time, the writer-director got to outwit, outplay, and outlast his competitors and made it to the grand finale alongside Nick Wilson and Angelina Keeley.

Mike White finished Survivor as runner-up after receiving three jury votes. Wilson won the show with seven jury votes, whereas Keeley finished in third place with zero votes.

Other connections between 'The White Lotus,' 'Survivor,' and 'The Amazing Race.'

Some of Mike White's costars from Survivor: David vs. Goliath have appeared on HBO's The White Lotus.

Namely, The White Lotus season 3 episode 1 featured cameos from Survivor: David vs. Goliath stars Natalie Cole and Carl Boudreaux at a dinner scene where Belinda Lindsey looked around the room — as seen in the clip below.

Moreover, Angelina Keeley (who got to the finale with White but finished in third place) and Kara Kay (who finished in fourth place in White's season of Survivor) played the two women who had just arrived at The White Lotus in Sicily and had a brief chat with Daphne Sullivan (Meghann Fahy).

Below, you can see these two Survivor icons in action.

There have also been videos drawing parallels between the characters and themes from The White Lotus season 1 in comparison to the trajectories of contestants on Survivor: David vs. Goliath.

One of those videos, "5 Reasons Why The White Lotus is ABSOLUTELY Based on Survivor," was published by YouTube channel @noveltyhat.

The connections between Survivor, The Amazing Race, and The White Lotus are clearly all over the place — and we can't wait to see what's next in the Mike White multiverse.

HBO's The White Lotus season 3 drops new episodes every Sunday on Max.