‘White Lotus’ Composer Made a ‘Bitch Move,’ Says Mike White

Who should face the music for this White Lotus musical feud? Show creator Mike White clearly doesn’t think he’s to blame. In a recent episode of The Howard Stern Show, White suggested that he was surprised to learn that composer Cristóbal Tapia de Veer told the press they had feuded. “I don’t think I ever had a fight with him, except maybe some emails — it was basically me giving him notes,” White insisted, going on to add, “I knew he was not a team player and that he wanted to do it his way or whatever, but I was thrown that he would go to The New York Times to shit on me and the show three days before the finale. It was kind of a bitch move.” Tapia de Veer previously confirmed that he would not be returning for the fourth season in an interview with the Times where he stated that his creative conflicts with White over the show’s score dated back to the first season. When describing White’s decision to cut an extended, “ooh-loo-loo” version of the season-three opening theme, the composer reflected, “We already had our last fight forever, I think.”

White feels that Tapia de Veer didn’t “respect” him and thus did not like getting notes or revisions from him. “He wants people to know that he’s edgy and dark and I’m … I don’t know, I watch reality TV,” the Survivor alum told Stern. He also noted that Tapia de Veer was an Emmy-winning composer by the time season three came around. “And he had his song go viral, so he just didn’t want to go through the process with me,” White said. “He always had this contemptuous smirk on his face whenever he was dealing with me, because I just think he thought I was just a chimp or something.” (Hey, just because you’re a chimp doesn’t mean you can’t be a Better Man, but we digress.) Although White did acknowledge that Tapia de Veer is “very talented,” he also added, “I’ve never kissed somebody’s ass so hard to just get him to … to lead that horse to water. Have fun with whatever you’re doing next.” Basically, the chances that these two will eventually work it out on a remix seem slim.