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I'm calling it: Greg was targeting Tanya from the first moment he met her on The White Lotus.

We're six episodes into The White Lotus season two.

The hotel guests are getting drunker, the simmering tension is reaching a crescendo, and there's no doubt in any of our minds that Greg is a dirty, dirty dog. 

A dirty, dirty dog who wishes harm against Tanya AKA Jennifer Coolidge AKA an INTERNATIONAL TREASURE. 

Greg is clearly the villain of season two, but I'd like to present the argument that Greg was also the villain in season one. We just didn't realise it at the time. 

Yes, our good friend Greg has been playing the long con. 

Lemme break it down for you. 

If you cast your mind all the way back to the white sands, casual racism and sh*t in a suitcase of season one, you'll recall that Tanya first met Greg when he was "accidentally" trying to get into her hotel room. 

WE'RE ONTO YOU, GREG. 

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Tanya was returning to her room when she saw Greg attempting to open her door with a swipe card. When he noticed her, he laughed off the incident, saying he got the wrong room and then walked towards his room, which was next door to Tanya's. 

He played the bumbling baby boomer so well, no one really questioned it at the time. 

The two then had a brief conversation, where Greg told Tanya he was on an annual deep sea fishing trip with a bunch of "buds". Which, in hindsight, could be Quentin and the fun/sinister gays of season two. 

He then established that Tanya was travelling alone, making her an easy mark.

When Tanya went into her room, Greg knocked on the door and invited her to dinner, explaining that his friends were leaving that day, setting up the perfect excuse for him to be free to spend time with her. 

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After dinner, they slept together. After they slept together, Greg had a coughing fit. 

WHERE'D HIS COUGH GO? 

He would later tell Tanya that he's had some health issues and "don't be surprised if I drop dead suddenly", which set him up to: 

1. Seem like less of a threat, and 

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2. Make her empathetic towards him. 

Greg then was a bit hot and cold with Tanya, making sure she was the one who pursued him - remember that scene of her watching him swim laps? 

Later, when Tanya freaked out, told him that she's "needy" and "insecure", brought out her dead mother's ashes, cried, and told him to "get the f**k out", Greg did not leave. 

Instead he said, "No, I still want to f**k you" to the crying woman and her mother's ashes because our GOOD FRIEND GREG WAS PLAYING THE LONG CON. 

The face of a man who's just found his mark. 

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Ok, let's fast forward to this season. 

In season two, Tanya and Greg are married and vacationing in Sicily. 

In one of the earlier episodes, Greg mentioned something about his prenup. He then took a "work call" in the bathroom and then just up and left.  

Then Quentin, his "nephew" Jack and the rest of the "fun gays" arrived and immediately took an interest in Tanya. 

They hung out a few times and then in episode five; they invited Tanya and her assistant Portia to Quentin's family's villa. 

Quentin took Tanya to the opera, and later back at the villa he told her that he once fell in love with an "American cowboy" and that American cowboy broke his heart. 

And then he told her he would "kill for beauty". 

In the final scenes of the episode, Tanya awoke to strange noises. She walked through the hallway and peered through a half-open door. There she found Jack (aka the hot English nephew of the fun gays) having sex with Quentin? His uncle? 

OK.....

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It was giving Game of Thrones but it was also a big ole hint that Quentin and Jack weren't who they say they were. 

In episode six, the fun gays hosted a party at the villa and set Tanya up with a good lookin’ fella with a lot of cocaine. 

Just when they were about to hook up, Tanya noticed a photo in a frame on a cabinet. She picked it up and looked closely at it. And in the photo were a young Quentin and a young Greg both wearing... cowboy hats. 

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?????????

WHAT IN THE MURDER-Y BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN? 

Greg is the American cowboy who broke Quentin's heart. 

THEY'RE IN THIS TOGETHER. 

Despite seeing the photo, Tanya continued to hook up with the good lookin' fella with the cocaine, but if you look closely, you can see a hidden camera in the background of this scene. 

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@katiebk91 #thewhitelotus #thewhitelotusseason2 #whitelotusseason2 #thewhitelotusseries #whitelotushbomax #tvshow #hbomax #fyp #foryou #foryoupage ♬ Intense Music(850540) - Pavel

So, back to Greg's prenup. How much do we want to bet there's an infidelity clause in that prenup? As in, if Tanya cheats on Greg the prenup is void. 

I believe in my heart of hearts, that Greg targeted Tanya in season one because she was a rich, single, vulnerable woman travelling alone. 

When they got married, Greg must have ensured there was an infidelity clause in his prenup - so that if Tanya cheats, he gets a payout. 

And then he can share it with Quentin and the fun/sinister gays. 

THE. 

LONG. 

CON. 

Tanya could be the first woman they've targeted, but Greg was so skilled at hooking her into his game, that I hazard a guess that Greg and his "deep sea fishing buds" may have been playing this game for a long time. 

I guess we'll find out when the finale of The White Lotus season two drops onto Binge at 1pm on Monday, December 12. 

See you then, summery, Sicilian murder fans. 

Keryn Donnelly is Mamamia's Pop Culture Editor. For her weekly TV, film and book recommendations and to see photos of her dog, follow her on Instagram and TikTok. 

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