Bridgerton

For the series of Regency romance novels, see Bridgerton (novel series).

Bridgerton
Genre	Regency romance Alternate history
Created by	Chris Van Dusen
Based on	Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
Showrunners	Chris Van Dusen Jess Brownell
Starring	See full list below
Composer	Kris Bowers
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	24
Production
Executive producers	Shonda Rhimes Betsy Beers Chris Van Dusen Julie Anne Robinson
Producers	Sarada McDermott Holden Chang Sarah Dollard
Editor	Jim Flynn
Running time	57–72 minutes
Production companies	Shondaland CVD Productions
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25) – present (present)
Related
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

Bridgerton is an American historical romance television series created by Chris Van Dusen for Netflix. Based on the book series by Julia Quinn, it is Shondaland's first scripted show for Netflix. The series is set during the early 1800s in an alternative London Regency era, in which George III established racial equality and granted many people of African descent aristocratic titles due to the African heritage of his wife, Queen Charlotte. The viewer is taken to observe the highly competitive social season; where young marriageable nobility and gentry are introduced into society.

The first season debuted on December 25, 2020. The second season premiered on March 25, 2022. The third season was across two parts, which premiered on May 16 and June 13, 2024, respectively. The series was renewed for a fourth season in April 2021. The fourth season will be released in August 2026. In May 2023, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, a spin-off series focused on Queen Charlotte, was released.

Bridgerton was positively received for its direction, actors' performances, production and set design, winning two Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, a Make-Up Artists And Hair Stylists Guild Awards, and nominations at the Primetime Emmy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Satellite Awards and NAACP Image Awards. The music score by Kris Bowers earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media.

Premise

Set against the backdrop of the Regency era, the eight close-knit siblings of the noble and powerful Bridgerton family – Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, and Hyacinth – navigate London high society in search of love, surrounded by friends and rivals alike.

Bridgerton family tree

Edmund † 8th Viscount Bridgerton

Violet Dowager Viscountess Bridgerton

Anthony 9th Viscount Bridgerton

Benedict

Colin

Daphne Duchess of Hastings

Eloise

Francesca Countess of Kilmartin

Gregory

Hyacinth

Cast and characters

Main article: List of Bridgerton characters

Main

Jonathan Bailey plays Anthony Bridgerton

Simone Ashley plays Kathani "Kate" Bridgerton (née Sharma)

Nicola Coughlan plays Penelope Bridgerton (née Featherington)

Adjoa Andoh plays Agatha Danbury

• Adjoa Andoh as Lady Agatha Danbury, the sharp-tongued, insightful doyenne of the ton
• Julie Andrews as the voice of Lady Whistledown, the author of a scandalous society newsletter
• Lorraine Ashbourne as Mrs. Varley, the Featheringtons' housekeeper
• Jonathan Bailey as Anthony, 9th Viscount Bridgerton, the eldest Bridgerton son and head of the family
• Ruby Barker (season 1; guest: season 2) as Marina, Lady Crane (née Thompson), a Featherington cousin from a rural gentry family
• Sabrina Bartlett (season 1) as Siena Rosso, an opera singer and Anthony's former lover
• Harriet Cains as Philippa Finch (née Featherington), the middle Featherington daughter
• Bessie Carter as Prudence Dankworth (née Featherington), the eldest Featherington daughter
• Nicola Coughlan as Penelope Bridgerton (née Featherington), the youngest Featherington daughter and Colin Bridgerton's wife
• Phoebe Dynevor (season 1–2) as Daphne Basset (née Bridgerton), Duchess of Hastings, the fourth Bridgerton child and eldest daughter
• Ruth Gemmell as Violet, Dowager Viscountess Bridgerton, mother of the Bridgerton children
• Florence Hunt as Hyacinth Bridgerton, the eighth and youngest Bridgerton child
• Claudia Jessie as Eloise Bridgerton, the fifth Bridgerton child and second daughter
• Ben Miller (season 1) as Archibald, Baron Featherington, the patriarch of the Featherington family
• Luke Newton as Colin Bridgerton, the third Bridgerton son
• Regé-Jean Page (season 1) as Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, one of London's most eligible bachelors who marries Daphne Bridgerton
• Golda Rosheuvel as Queen Charlotte, Queen of the United Kingdom and wife of King George III
• Luke Thompson as Benedict Bridgerton, the second Bridgerton son, and the male co-lead for Season 4.
• Will Tilston as Gregory Bridgerton, the seventh Bridgerton child and youngest son
• Polly Walker as Portia, Dowager Baroness Featherington, the matriarch of the Featherington family
• Simone Ashley (season 2–present) as Kathani "Kate", Viscountess Bridgerton (née Sharma), a spinster who arrived from India, and Anthony Bridgerton's wife
• Charithra Chandran (season 2) as Edwina Sharma, Kate's younger half-sister
• Shelley Conn (season 2) as Lady Mary Sharma (née Sheffield), Kate's stepmother and Edwina's mother
• Martins Imhangbe as Will Mondrich, gentleman's club owner, retired boxer, and confidant of the Duke of Hastings
• Calam Lynch (season 2) as Theo Sharpe, an apprentice at the printing shop used by Lady Whistledown who befriends Eloise
• Rupert Young (season 2) as Jack, Baron Featherington, the new head of the Featherington family
• Victor Alli (season 3–present) as John Stirling, Earl of Kilmartin, a suitor pursuing and later marrying Francesca Bridgerton
• Joanna Bobin (season 3; recurring: season 1–2) as Lady Araminta Cowper, Cressida's mother
• Dominic Coleman (season 3; recurring: season 2) as Lord Cowper, Cressida's father
• Ruby Stokes (recurring: season 1–2) and Hannah Dodd (season 3–present) as Francesca Stirling (née Bridgerton), Countess of Kilmartin, the sixth Bridgerton child and third daughter
• Daniel Francis (season 3–present) as Marcus Anderson, Lady Danbury's brother
• Jessica Madsen (season 3; recurring: season 1–2) as Cressida Cowper, an ill-mannered debutante competing with Daphne and Penelope
• Hannah New (season 3) as Lady Tilley Arnold, a widow who has a fling with Benedict
• Masali Baduza (season 4; guest season 3) as Michaela Stirling, John's cousin, Francesca's love interest
• Yerin Ha (season 4) as Sophie Baek, Benedict's love interest and the female co-lead for Season 4.
• Katie Leung (season 4) as Lady Araminta Gun, Sophie's step-mother, Rosamund and Posy's mother
• Michelle Mao (season 4) as Rosamund Li, Araminta's older daughter and one of Sophie's stepsisters
• Emma Naomi (season 4; recurring seasons 1–3) as Alice Mondrich, Will Mondrich's wife
• Hugh Sachs (season 4; recurring seasons 1–3) as Brimsley, the Queen's gossip-mongering secretary and Queen's man
• Isabella Wei (season 4) as Posy Li, Araminta's younger daughter and one of Sophie's stepsisters

Recurring

• Molly McGlynn as Rose Nolan, Daphne's loyal maid and confidant (season 1)
• Jason Barnett as Jeffries, the Bassets' butler (season 1)
• Oli Higginson as John, a footman in the Bridgerton household often working for Eloise
• Geraldine Alexander as Mrs. Wilson, the Bridgertons' housekeeper
• Kathryn Drysdale as Genevieve Delacroix, a high society modiste
• Simon Ludders as Humboldt, the Bridgertons' butler (season 1)
• Julian Ovenden as Sir Henry Granville, an artist who befriends Benedict (season 1)
• Caleb Obediah as Lord Charles Cho, a society gentleman (season 2–3)
• Bert Seymour as Lord Fife, a society gentleman (season 2–3)
• Sam Battersea as Lady Barragan, Winifred Barragan's mother (season 3)
• Ella Bruccoleri as Winifred Barragan, a debutant with Francesca (season 3)
• Genevieve Chenneour as Clara Livingston, a fellow debutante with Francesca (season 3)
• Kitty Devlin as Dolores Stowell, a fellow debutante with Francesca (season 3)
• Rosa Hesmondhalgh as Rae, maid and confidant to Penelope Bridgerton (née Featherington) (season 3)
• Sesly Hope as Emma Kenworthy, a debutante with Francesca (season 3)
• Molly Jackson-Shaw as Anne Hartigan, a debutante with Francesca (season 3)
• Lorn Macdonald as Albion Finch, Philippa Featherington's husband (season 3; guest season 1–2)
• Sam Phillips as Lord Alfred Debling, a suitor who courts Penelope (season 3)
• James Phoon as Harry Dankworth, Prudence Featherington's husband (season 3)
• Vineeta Rishi as Lady Malhotra, Sita Malhotra's mother (season 3)
• Banita Sandhu as Sita Malhotra, a fellow debutante with Francesca (season 3)
• Anna Wilson-Jones as Lady Livingston, Clara Livingston's mother (season 3)
• Sophie Woolley as Lady Stowell, Dolores Stowell's mother (season 3)

Guest

• Jamie Beamish as Nigel, Baron Berbrooke, Daphne's suitor (season 1)
• Caroline Quentin as Lady Berbrooke, Nigel's mother (season 1)
• Freddie Stroma as Prince Frederick of Prussia, the Queen's grandnephew (season 1)
• Amy Beth Hayes as Lady Trowbridge, the hedonistic widow of an earl (season 1)
• James Fleet as King George III, the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (season 1–2)
• Céline Buckens as Kitty Langham, a general's wife (season 1)
• Chris Fulton as Sir Philip Crane, Marina's husband, a baronet (season 1–2)
• Daphne Di Cinto as Sarah Basset, Duchess of Hastings, Simon's mother (season 1)
• Richard Pepple as the Duke of Hastings, Simon's father (season 1)
• Pippa Haywood as Mrs. Colson, the housekeeper at the Hastings' country estate (season 1)
• Anthony Head as Lord Sheffield, Lady Mary's father and Edwina's grandfather (season 2)
• Shobu Kapoor as Lady Sheffield, Lady Mary's mother and Edwina's grandmother (season 2)
• Rupert Evans as Edmund, 8th Viscount Bridgerton, father of the Bridgerton children (season 2)
• Zak Ford-Williams as Lord Remington, Lady Whistledown's greatest fan (season 3)

Episodes

Season	Episodes		Originally released
1	8		December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
2	8		March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
3	8	4	May 16, 2024 (2024-05-16)
		4	June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13)

Season 1 (2020)

For the novel the season is based on, see The Duke and I.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Teleplay by	Original release date
1	1	"Diamond of the First Water"	Julie Anne Robinson	Chris Van Dusen	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
The 1813 season begins, and a scandal sheet written by the mysterious "Lady Whistledown" starts circulating London. Daphne Bridgerton makes her debut into society along with the three Featherington sisters, including Penelope; Daphne is given high praise by Queen Charlotte. Daphne's older brother Anthony, Viscount Bridgerton, drives away many potential suitors except the detestable Lord Berbrooke, and her popularity threatens to be eclipsed by Marina Thompson, Penelope's cousin. Meanwhile, Simon Basset, the new Duke of Hastings and an old friend of Anthony's, returns to London upon his father's death. His old acquaintance Lady Danbury coaxes him into joining the season, where he encounters both Anthony and Daphne. After breaking up with his mistress, Siena Rosso, Anthony promises a horrified Daphne to Berbrooke. Lady Featherington confronts Marina, having deduced that she is pregnant. Later on, after following her from an event, Berbrooke accosts Daphne, and she punches him in self-defense. Having arrived moments before, Simon suggests to her that they pretend to court to enhance her prospects and free him from any of his own. Daphne agrees, and the new couple instantly draws attention from the ton.
2	2	"Shock and Delight"	Tom Verica	Janet Lin	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Flashbacks reveal Simon's tragic childhood. After his mother died in childbirth, Simon's cruel father rejected him upon discovering his stammer. Lady Danbury came to his aid, supervising his education and helping him to overcome his speech issues. As revenge for his father's negligence, Simon vows to him at his deathbed that he will never sire an heir. Penelope shares her confusion with Eloise Bridgerton as to how a child is conceived; Marina is confined to her room by Lady Featherington but shares with Penelope that her pregnancy came from a man named Sir George Crane, a soldier. Simon and Daphne's ruse works perfectly, but Anthony is upset by Simon's supposed pursuit of his sister. When Simon tells Anthony what Lord Berbrooke tried to do to Daphne, Anthony breaks his agreement with Lord Berbrooke. However, Berbrooke acquires a special marriage license and threatens to ruin Daphne's name. Lady Bridgerton intervenes and is able to influence Lady Whistledown to reveal a scandal that forces Berbrooke to leave London.
3	3	"Art of the Swoon"	Tom Verica	Leila Cohan-Miccio	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Daphne turns down multiple proposals as she grows closer to Simon. Lady Featherington tries to find a match for Marina, but she insists on waiting for word from George. Determined to prove that she is still the true ruler of London society, the Queen schemes to match Daphne with her nephew, Prince Friedrich of Prussia. Lady Danbury tells Simon that he needs to propose to Daphne or step aside, and Simon reluctantly calls off the fake courtship. Benedict Bridgerton suspects Eloise of being Lady Whistledown, but instead learns they are both dissatisfied with their prospects. Anthony tries to reconcile with Siena, but she turns him down. Marina receives a letter from George stating his refusal to take responsibility for her child, but the letter was forged by Lady Featherington. Lady Bridgerton pushes Anthony to think about a match for himself. Simon decides to leave London early as a heartbroken Daphne embraces Prince Friedrich's attentions.
4	4	"An Affair of Honor"	Sheree Folkson	Abby McDonald	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Prince Friedrich gifts Daphne a necklace to show his interest. Marina is presented to older suitors in want of heirs to marry her off quickly. Eloise tries to uncover Lady Whistledown's identity. Marina is saved from an elderly suitor by Colin Bridgerton, one of her many early admirers. Anthony tells Daphne that Friedrich asked for his consent to propose. During a ball, an undecided Daphne flees to the garden, where Simon approaches her to say goodbye and apologize. Upset, Daphne runs into a hedge maze; Simon follows, and the two share a passionate kiss, but are discovered by Anthony. Anthony furiously demands that they marry; when Simon refuses, he challenges him to a duel at dawn. Penelope is crushed by Colin's interest in Marina, having secretly loved him for years. Anthony plans to use the duel to free himself from society and be with Siena. Lady Featherington discovers her husband's gambling debts, and deduces that their daughters will be deprived of dowries and they'll be forced to continue accommodating Marina. Daphne realizes that Cressida Cowper, her rival for Prince Friedrich's affections, witnessed what happened in the garden and races to stop the duel. Simon claims that he cannot marry her because he cannot provide her with children. Weighing her options, Daphne firmly declares they will marry anyway.
5	5	"The Duke and I"	Sheree Folkson	Joy C Mitchell	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Daphne and Simon petition for a special marriage license, but are refused due to the Queen's ire at Daphne rejecting her nephew. As money issues plague the Featherington home, Penelope grows more jealous of Colin's interest in Marina and wary of Marina's motives. Benedict is invited to a party by the artist Sir Henry Granville. Lady Featherington orders Marina to stop pursuing Colin, but Marina assures her she has a plan. Simon and Daphne appeal to the Queen for an early wedding; with King George growing more incapacitated, the Queen is moved by Simon's impassioned plea. Simon and Daphne are married. Following an unsuccessful attempt to seduce him, Marina receives a proposal from Colin at the wedding reception, but is dismayed to learn he wishes for a long engagement. The Queen takes interest in Eloise's investigation into Lady Whistledown's identity. Lady Bridgerton's attempts to explain a wedding night leave Daphne with more questions than answers. On their way to Simon's family home, he and Daphne spend the night at an inn. Daphne finally confronts Simon over his indifference towards her, spurring him to confess that his declaration of love was genuine, and Daphne confesses she feels the same; despite Daphne's lack of awareness, the pair consummate their marriage.
6	6	"Swish"	Julie Anne Robinson	Sarah Dollard	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Simon and Daphne arrive at Clyvedon and enjoy their honeymoon. Daphne has difficulty building a relationship with Clyvedon's housekeeper Mrs. Colson and the local villagers. Colin announces his engagement to Marina, to the dismay of his family and Penelope. Penelope tells Colin that Marina is in love with another man, but he is unbothered and suggests to Marina that they should marry sooner by traveling to Scotland. Daphne learns from Mrs. Colson about Simon's upbringing. Penelope deduces that George's letter was faked, but Marina chooses to marry Colin anyway. Marina realizes Penelope loves him, and bluntly condemns Penelope's feelings, reducing Penelope to tears. With the help of her lady's maid, Daphne figures out that Simon could have children if he chose to, but is deliberately withdrawing early to avoid impregnating her. Later, while having sex with Simon, she holds him down so he cannot withdraw, and confronts him afterward, accusing him of lying to her about being infertile. Just as Colin and Marina prepare to elope, Lady Whistledown's publishes Marina's pregnancy, exposing her.
7	7	"Oceans Apart"	Alrick Riley	Jay Ross & Abby McDonald	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
Amid their marital dispute, Daphne decides to return to London to assist in undoing the scandal surrounding Colin. Simon willingly joins her, but now wishes to live separately from Daphne if she is not with child. Eloise continues to investigate Lady Whistledown, now desiring to restore the Featherington name. Colin is devastated to learn Marina was using him to secure a future for her baby; Daphne, feeling sympathetic, offers to help Marina find George. The Queen grows irritable at Eloise's failure to uncover Lady Whistledown and later throws the Featheringtons out of her luncheon. Daphne enlists the help of a general's wife to locate Sir George. Lord Featherington approaches boxer Will Mondrich to convince him to throw his next fight; Will considers it, as the money Lord Featherington has offered could ensure his family's security. Daphne learns Simon swore to his father he would not have children, but still does not understand why. Eloise concludes that modiste Genevieve Delacroix is the most likely candidate for Lady Whistledown's true identity. Marina attempts to induce a miscarriage, and Penelope finds her unconscious. At the opera, Daphne learns she is not pregnant; she cries in her mother's arms, with Simon in earshot.
8	8	"After the Rain"	Alrick Riley	Chris Van Dusen	December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25)
George's brother Sir Philip Crane arrives to tell Marina that George died in battle. Philip offers to marry Marina himself, but she turns him down believing she has ended her pregnancy. Eloise confronts Genevieve and, believing her to be Lady Whistledown, tries to covertly convince her to restore the Featheringtons' honor. Daphne learns of Simon's childhood from Lady Danbury. Simon reconsiders what he wants after spending time with Daphne's younger siblings. Siena rejects Anthony's attempts to bring her into the ton, saying that he should move on. Lord Featherington makes a bet against Will with ill-reputed bookmakers; Will throws the fight and receives half of Lord Featherington's winnings, while the latter is subsequently murdered by the bookmakers. Marina accepts Philip's proposal after discovering that she is still pregnant, and departs London with him. Penelope considers confessing her love to Colin, but before she can, he reveals that he is leaving the country to travel. The Queen's agents attempt to capture Lady Whistledown, but Eloise prevents it. Daphne and Simon reconcile during their ball. Anthony announces that he has decided to marry, but without love. Eloise realizes that Genevieve cannot be Lady Whistledown, revealed solely to the audience to be Penelope. In a flash-forward, Daphne and Simon have their first child, a son.

Season 2 (2022)

For the novel the season is based on, see The Viscount Who Loved Me.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Teleplay by	Original release date
9	1	"Capital R Rake"	Tricia Brock	Chris Van Dusen	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Anthony starts seeking a wife and immediately becomes one of the season's most eligible bachelors. He meets with several eligible ladies, but no prospects intrigue him. Eloise is set to make her debut in society, but her presentation to the queen is interrupted by the return of Lady Whistledown's scandal sheets. On a morning ride, Anthony meets a young woman he later learns is Miss Kate Sharma. Lady Danbury has sponsored the Sharma family for the season; Kate and her stepmother, Lady Mary, aim to find Mary's accomplished daughter Edwina a husband. Edwina wants a love match but is unaware that Kate made a deal with Mary's noble parents to gain a trust fund on the condition that Edwina marry a peer. Kate overhears Anthony proclaiming that he does not care if he loves his wife so long as she is agreeable. The queen names Edwina the season's diamond, and Anthony resolves to make her his wife. Meanwhile, Portia struggles with her family's finances before the new Featherington heir, Jack, arrives in London.
10	2	"Off to the Races"	Tricia Brock	Daniel Robinson	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Edwina has drawn the eye of several suitors, and Kate has taken charge of deciding which ones Edwina will meet. To Anthony's dismay, she is staunchly against Anthony courting her. Colin returns from his travels, while Eloise becomes intrigued with finding out Lady Whistledown's identity once again. After learning that Edwina will be at the horse races accompanied by another lord, Anthony takes his family and manages to ingratiate himself with Edwina. Queen Charlotte plans to use Edwina to unmask Lady Whistledown. Benedict entertains the prospect of studying art. Anthony impresses Edwina with a speech at a soiree hosted by Lady Danbury, much to Kate's dismay. Genevieve catches Penelope at the market.
11	3	"A Bee in Your Bonnet"	Alex Pillai	Sarah L. Thompson	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
A series of flashbacks reveal the sudden death of Anthony's father Edmund, and the grief he saw his mother go through while he faced pressure in becoming the new viscount. In the present day, the Bridgertons are preparing for their prestigious annual country party at Aubrey Hall, and Anthony has invited the Sharmas to stay for a few days ahead of the party. Along with Kate and Edwina, the siblings play a spirited game of pall-mall that results in Anthony and Kate bonding. To Kate's dismay, Anthony charms Edwina and tries to propose at dinner but backs out at the last moment. Benedict is accepted at the Royal Academy Schools while Eloise becomes interested in women's rights. Fearing that Jack will marry Cressida Cowper and oust the Featherington women from their home, Portia plots to have Prudence marry him. Penelope recruits Genevieve to be part of the Lady Whistledown scheme. In the gardens of Aubrey Hall, Kate is stung by a bee, causing Anthony to panic; the two almost kiss.
12	4	"Victory"	Alex Pillai	Chris Van Dusen & Jess Brownell	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Guests begin arriving at Aubrey Hall for the Bridgerton party. Unaware of their mutual attraction, Edwina encourages Kate to spend time with Anthony, thinking Kate's disapproval keeps him from proposing. Kate goes on a hunt with the men, where she and Anthony share another physical moment. Colin visits Marina, now Lady Crane, and meets her new husband. Marina's marriage is not happy, but she tells him to move on. Daphne tries to get to know Edwina, but is unconvinced that she is a good match for Anthony. Portia arranges for Jack and Prudence to be caught alone to force them into marriage, but Jack reveals that he is secretly penniless and had been planning to marry Cressida for her fortune. Daphne catches Anthony and Kate in a compromising position in the library and urges Anthony to be honest with his feelings. As the Sharmas prepare to depart for London, Anthony proposes to Edwina, and she accepts.
13	5	"An Unthinkable Fate"	Tom Verica	Abby McDonald	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Queen Charlotte heartily approves of Anthony and Edwina's engagement and even offers to host the wedding. Anthony becomes jealous when Kate goes on a boat ride with another man. Eloise sneaks out to Bloomsbury to attend a meeting about equal rights and meets Theo Sharpe, a printer's assistant. Mary's parents, the Sheffields, visit London to meet Edwina, but at dinner, they display contempt for Mary and Kate, and their arrangement that Edwina should marry a nobleman comes to light. Defending all three of the Sharma women, Anthony orders the Sheffields to leave but is hesitant to continue the marriage; Kate convinces him to do so even as they admit to their feelings. Upon learning that several gentlemen are interested in investing in Jack's mines, Portia convinces him to take their money.
14	6	"The Choice"	Tom Verica	Lou-Lou Igbokwe	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Preparations are underway for Anthony and Edwina's wedding. Daphne tries to steer Anthony into calling it off to no avail. Kate offers her mother's bracelets for Edwina to wear, but her sister tells her to wear them instead. At the wedding, Kate and Anthony cannot help but stare at each other; when Kate drops her bracelet at the altar, Anthony rushes to help her. Edwina realizes their connection and runs away from the altar. A furious Queen Charlotte has the guests stay in the garden as Edwina composes herself. Kate tries to explain herself to Edwina, and Anthony confirms he is intent on the marriage; Edwina eventually decides that she cannot marry him. Kate and Anthony are left alone in the church and kiss. In the chaos, Jack makes potential business connections, and Eloise takes the opportunity to visit Theo once again.
15	7	"Harmony"	Cheryl Dunye	Oliver Goldstick	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Following the failed wedding, the Bridgertons and Sharmas, along with Lady Danbury, are shunned by the ton. Queen Charlotte accuses Eloise of being Lady Whistledown and gives her three days to come clean, or risk punishment for her family. Eloise confides this in Penelope; in an attempt to protect her, Penelope writes that Eloise has been seen fraternizing unchaperoned with political radicals. The news embroils the Bridgertons in further scandal and nobody arrives at the ball they are hosting. Colin considers investing with Jack. Amidst the failed ball, Kate and Anthony confess their attraction and sleep together; the next day, Anthony attempts to visit Kate but is told that she has departed on a horse. Anthony follows Kate into a rainstorm on horseback, but she is thrown from her horse and knocked unconscious.
16	8	"The Viscount Who Loved Me"	Cheryl Dunye	Jess Brownell	March 25, 2022 (2022-03-25)
Kate is still unconscious, and Lady Whistledown has been suspiciously quiet. Portia convinces Jack to host a ball and invites the Bridgertons and Sharmas; Jack considers moving to America to start over before their fraud is discovered. Eloise ends her friendship with Theo after Penelope falsely tells her that servants have been gossiping about them. Benedict learns that he was likely accepted to the Academy due to a donation from Anthony. Kate awakens from her coma, and Anthony proposes to her, but she declines, citing her desire to return to India. Edwina reconciles with Kate and convinces her to attend the Featherington ball. Eloise figures out Penelope is Lady Whistledown and cuts all ties with Penelope. Portia turns on Jack and sends him back to America while keeping most of the funds he had gathered for herself. After the end of Eloise's friendship and overhearing Colin telling other gentlemen that he would never court Penelope, a heartbroken Penelope decides to continue as Lady Whistledown. Kate and Anthony dance at the ball, but the Queen neatly saves their reputations. Anthony and Kate declare their love for one another. After traveling for six months, Kate and Anthony, now married, join the rest of the Bridgertons for another game of pall-mall at Aubrey Hall.

Season 3 (2024)

For the novel the season is based on, see Romancing Mister Bridgerton.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Teleplay by	Original release date
Part 1
17	1	"Out of the Shadows"	Tricia Brock	Jess Brownell	May 16, 2024 (2024-05-16)
Colin returns from abroad and charms the ladies of the ton, though Penelope isn't thrilled due to his previous unkind remarks. Francesca Bridgerton has made her debut to society, although she is more shy than her siblings and would rather yearn for peace to play her piano amidst the social whirlwind. Meanwhile, Eloise has transformed and is now interested in fashion, and she is friends with Cressida Cowper, to Violet Bridgerton's dismay, after Eloise's falling out with Penelope. Queen Charlotte is not very interested in the debutantes, despite Lady Whistledown's praise. Lady Portia Featherington is preoccupied with ensuring her daughters secure heirs to maintain their estate. Meanwhile, Penelope, feeling stifled by her family, undergoes a makeover. The Mondrich family's young son unexpectedly inherits the title of Baron of Kent, bringing wealth and thrusting them into society. At the Danbury ball, Penelope's new look turns heads but leads to a humiliating incident orchestrated by Cressida, leaving Penelope fleeing and Colin in pursuit. He tries to apologize, unaware of the Whistledown scandal she wrote about him. Later, Colin apologizes to Penelope and offers to help her find a husband, mending their friendship. However, Penelope faces the fallout of her biting Whistledown piece as Colin vows to unmask the scandal-sheet author, threatening her secret identity.
18	2	"How Bright the Moon"	Tricia Brock	Sarah L. Thompson	May 16, 2024 (2024-05-16)
Queen Charlotte remains unfazed by Lady Whistledown's gossip and takes her time in choosing the season's diamond. Instead of rushing, she decides to let the girls impress her, potentially causing chaos. The Mondriches move into a grand estate but are unhappy with its formality, their separate bedrooms and the out-of-style dresses Mrs. Mondrich inherits; she plans to alter them to fit in. Lady Danbury shares information with the Bridgertons, and Portia Featherington interrogates her daughters about their marital relations. Penelope and Colin's relationship deepens through flirting lessons to test her skills on a promenade, revealing a charming backstory. Colin helps Penelope navigate social interactions at a ball, leading to humorous and awkward moments. Eloise accidentally spreads Colin and Penelope's arrangement to the ton, sparking a scandal and causing friction between Colin and Eloise. Lady Featherington instructs her daughters in sexual insights to produce an heir and avoid losing the estate. To avoid further suspicion, Penelope writes about herself in Whistledown. Penelope's self-doubt leads her to ask Colin for a kiss, resulting in a passionate moment that suggests deeper feelings.
19	3	"Forces of Nature"	Andrew Ahn	Eli Wilson Pelton	May 16, 2024 (2024-05-16)
Colin is distracted by his growing feelings for Penelope. Eloise apologizes for spreading the gossip, but still keeps her distance from Penelope. Lady Cowper warns Cressida that Lord Cowper is threatening to cut them off unless Cressida marries. She sets her sights on Lord Debling just as he starts to show interest in Penelope. Philippa finally succeeds in getting pregnant, to Portia's delight and Prudence's dismay. The Mondriches start choosing their own wardrobe, impressing the ton. Will wants to hold onto his club, despite society not accepting it. During a balloon launch, Benedict meets a very opinionated woman, revealed to be Lady Tilley Arnold. After naming Francesca her "sparkler", Queen Charlotte introduces her to Lord Samadani, a marquess from Vienna. Overwhelmed by his attention, Francesca retreats from the ball, and meets a handsome stranger. Violet meets Marcus Anderson, Lady Danbury's brother, and the two are attracted to each other. Colin gets advice from Violet about friendship turning into love and tries to confess his feelings to Penelope. However, Lord Debling asks her for a dance, which she accepts, while Colin watches enviously.
20	4	"Old Friends"	Andrew Ahn	Lauren Gamble	May 16, 2024 (2024-05-16)
Penelope's courtship with Lord Debling leads to him asking Portia's permission to propose. Francesca is called on by the handsome stranger she met: John Stirling, Earl of Kilmartin. Benedict starts a relationship with Tilley. Will is adamant to keep his club, despite losing business. After John makes a heartfelt gesture towards Francesca at the queen's ball, she openly rejects Lord Samadani, to Charlotte's dismay. Violet mentions to Marcus how Lady Danbury is a matchmaker; he asks for her help to find him a match, but she flatly refuses. After Colin learns of Debling's impending proposal, he shows up at the ball and interrupts him and Penelope dancing to argue against the match, but Penelope says she'll accept Debling's proposal. After learning from Cressida that the Bridgertons and Featheringtons are neighbors, Debling realizes Penelope is in love with Colin, and withdraws his suit. Prudence distracts Portia from Debling's rejection with news that she's also pregnant. Colin chases after Penelope when she leaves the ball, and admits his feelings for her. The two share a passionate exchange in the carriage until they pull up to Colin's house. He gets down, and immediately proposes to Penelope.
Part 2
21	5	"Tick Tock"	Bille Woodruff	Azia Squire	June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13)
Colin announces that he and Penelope are engaged to the family and Eloise is furious. Eloise secretly asks Penelope if she's told Colin she is Lady Whistledown, and Penelope replies she will tell him as soon as she finds the right time. Anthony and a pregnant Kate return and are surprised but happy to hear of the engagement. Cressida tells Eloise that her parents are arranging her marriage with Lord Greer, an old man. Portia is angry that she had to hear the news from Lady Whistledown and accuses Penelope of trying to entrap Colin, but Colin arrives and stands up to Portia and tells Penelope he loves her. Colin and Penelope head to their future home where they make love to each other. Meanwhile, the queen declares a £5000 reward to anyone who can bring evidence about Lady Whistledown's identity. Portia talks to Varley and realizes the match may not be a bad thing; she later stands up for Penelope to her other daughters when they bully her. At their engagement party, Eloise figures out that Penelope hasn't told Colin yet the truth about Lady Whistledown, and tells her she has until midnight to tell him, otherwise she will. In the party, the conversation turns to Lady Whistledown with everyone saying that whoever is Lady Whistledown will be socially ruined and have no marriage prospects but will have independence and financial freedom. To escape her marriage, Cressida declares herself to be Lady Whistledown as Penelope suffers a panic attack and falls unconscious.
22	6	"Romancing Mister Bridgerton"	Bille Woodruff	Annabelle Hood	June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13)
The queen summons Cressida and asks her to write a new Lady Whistledown herself in order to prove that she is actually Lady Whistledown. Penelope is conflicted on whether letting Cressida take the blame is a good idea or not and talks with Eloise about it. Meanwhile, Francesca and John Stirling announce that they are engaged, to the family's surprise and happiness, but Violet has misgivings about Francesca's love. Portia talks to Penelope and tells her of her own experience in a bad marriage; the mother and daughter bond. At the Mondrich ball, Marcus tries to speak with Violet but Lady Danbury instead confronts him, saying he won't steal her friend. She reveals that years ago, he prevented her from trying to flee her marriage with Lord Danbury by informing their father, and Lady Danbury still holds a grudge against her brother due to this reason. At the ball, an uninvited Cressida and her mother meet the queen and distribute new copies of Lady Whistledown, secretly written by her mother. Penelope and Eloise are furious and Penelope writes another Whistledown to get it published the next day, vehemently denying that Cressida is Lady Whistledown. However, unbeknownst to her, Colin follows her and figures out that she is Lady Whistledown.
23	7	"Joining of Hands"	Tom Verica	Geetika Tandon Lizardi	June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13)
An emotionally charged Colin confronts Penelope and expresses his feelings of betrayal and anger. Both the copies of Whistledown from Cressida and Penelope arrive the next day, and the queen decides not to reward Cressida. Colin confronts Eloise and Eloise tells him that she didn't reveal the secret to protect Colin. Colin and Penelope decide to go through with the wedding but he asks her to stop publishing. Penelope gets advice from Genevieve, who advises her to embrace her true self and continue publishing. On the night before the wedding, Penelope tells Colin she cannot stop writing but tells Colin she loves him. Colin has a late-night conversation with Anthony and Kate which provides him some perspective. The next day, they both go through with the wedding, but do not mend their rift entirely. John asks Francesca to dance during the wedding which finally wins Violet over, Lady Danbury and her brother make up after he apologizes to her, and Kate and Anthony decide to travel to India for the birth of their baby. The Queen suspects a Bridgerton is behind Lady Whistledown after noticing that all the issues portray the Bridgertons in a positive light; she comes to the wedding and confronts them. After the queen leaves, Colin asks Penelope to stop writing due to the threat of the queen, but she replies that this is the only way she could have some freedom, leading to a rocky start in their marriage. That night, Cressida figures out Penelope is Lady Whistledown after visiting a few printing presses.
24	8	"Into the Light"	Tom Verica	Daniel Robinson	June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13)
The day after their wedding, Colin and Penelope face a frosty start to their marriage. Cressida blackmails Penelope for £10,000, threatening to reveal her identity as Lady Whistledown. Cressida exposes Penelope to her Portia leading to an angry confrontation. Portia demands secrecy to avoid annulment, but Penelope informs Colin and Eloise of Cressida's scheme. Colin's attempt to negotiate with Cressida fails, increasing her demands to £20,000. Penelope takes charge, sharing her Whistledown identity with Queen Charlotte and the Bridgerton family. At a ball thrown by her sisters, Penelope publicly confesses, surprising the ton but earning the queen's leniency. Penelope's assertiveness rekindles her relationship with Colin and they reconcile. Meanwhile, the other Bridgertons experience personal growth: Benedict explores his romantic boundaries by enjoying bedding both Lady Arnold and her friend Paul, however he decides this is not what he wants in life and breaks up with both of them; Francesca and John get married and move to Scotland, and Eloise joins Francesca and John Stirling in Scotland with John's cousin, Michaela Stirling. The episode concludes with a flash-forward revealing Penelope and Colin as happy parents of the new Lord Featherington and both successful authors, with Penelope retiring Lady Whistledown to write under her own name.

Production

Development

Season 1

Bridgerton executive producer Shonda Rhimes

On July 20, 2018, Netflix announced that Shonda Rhimes, through her production company Shondaland, would produce the screen adaptation of the bestselling novels of the Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn, while Chris Van Dusen would serve as showrunner. Quinn explained on The Tamron Hall Show that when she heard from her agent that Rhimes was interested in adapting her novels, she "almost fell off of [her] stool," and quickly agreed to the offer. Season 1 of the show adapted The Duke and I, the first book of Quinn's series.

Van Dusen said in a Shondaland article: "I think [period shows] are considered a bit traditional and conservative. With Bridgerton, I wanted to take everything I loved about a period show and turn it into something fresh, topical, and relatable."

Season 2

Before the first season aired, the show was already in pre-production for a second season which was officially announced in January 2021. It is focused on Anthony and based on the book The Viscount Who Loved Me. On April 13, 2021, creator Van Dusen revealed on Twitter that the series had additionally been renewed for a third and fourth season.

Season 3

Unlike the first two seasons, which followed the order of the book series, the third season focuses on Colin, based on Quinn's fourth novel Romancing Mister Bridgerton, rather than Benedict. Jess Brownell replaced Van Dusen as writer and showrunner for the third and fourth seasons.

Season 4

In July 2024, it was confirmed that Benedict Bridgerton would be the lead for Season 4.

Casting

Unlike the series of novels, Bridgerton is set in an alternate history with a racially integrated London where people of color are members of the ton, some with titles granted by the sovereign. Creator Chris Van Dusen was inspired by historical debate over the 1940s African ancestry claims of Queen Charlotte "...to base the show in an alternative history in which Queen Charlotte's mixed race heritage was not only well-established but was transformative for Black people and other people of color in England." Van Dusen says the series is not "color-blind" because "that would imply that color and race were never considered, when color and race are part of the show."

Season 1

On June 19, 2019, Julie Andrews was cast as Lady Whistledown, whose voice-overs explain much of the series' action. In addition, Phoebe Dynevor and Regé-Jean Page were cast to play the leads with Jonathan Bailey, Golda Rosheuvel, Luke Newton, Claudia Jessie, Nicola Coughlan, Ruby Barker, Sabrina Bartlett, Ruth Gemmell, Adjoa Andoh and Polly Walker co-starring. Luke Thompson, Will Tilston, Florence Hunt, and Ruby Stokes were cast as the remaining four Bridgerton siblings at the end of July. Rounding out the cast were Ben Miller, Bessie Carter, Harriet Cains, Martins Imhangbe, and Lorraine Ashbourne.

Season 2

On January 21, 2021, it was announced that Jonathan Bailey would be reprising his role as Anthony and would be the center of the show's sophomore season. The following month, Simone Ashley had been cast as Kate. On April 5, 2021, Charithra Chandran joined the cast as Edwina; Rupert Young joined to play a new character; Shelley Conn was cast as Kate's stepmother and Edwina's mother, Mary; and Calam Lynch was cast as Theo Sharpe. On May 28, 2021, Rupert Evans joined the cast as Edmund Bridgerton, the late patriarch of the Bridgerton family.

Page did not return for the second season despite being asked to come back as he only signed a one-year deal and wanted to explore other opportunities outside the show.

Season 3

In April 2022, Bailey and Ashley were confirmed to return for the third season as Viscount and Viscountess Bridgerton, exploring their married life and duties as heads of the eponymous family. The following month, Hannah Dodd was cast to replace Ruby Stokes as Francesca Bridgerton for the third season. Stokes exited the show due to scheduling conflicts with Lockwood & Co. In August 2022, Chandran reported that she would not reprise her role as Edwina for the season. In July 2022, Daniel Francis, Sam Phillips, and James Phoon were cast in undisclosed capacities for the third season. In October 2022, Hannah New joined the cast as Lady Tilley Arnold. In January 2023, Dynevor confirmed she would not appear in the third season, but remained open to returning "in the future".

Season 4

In May 2024, Coughlan and Newton were confirmed to be returning for the fourth season. In August 2024, Yerin Ha was cast as Sophie Baek (known as Sophie Beckett in the novel) while Bailey confirmed his return for the fourth season, but that he would be filming for only "a few weeks". In September 2024, Katie Leung, Isabella Wei and Michelle Mao joined as Araminta, Rosamund, and Posy, while Hugh Sachs and Emma Naomi have been upgraded to series regulars. In October 2024, Ashley confirmed that she would be returning for the season.

Filming

Season 1

Principal photography commenced in July 2019 and wrapped in late February 2020. Bridgerton was filmed in London and Bath, as well as at various estates and parks around England. Although the series takes place in London, most street scenes were filmed in Bath, York, and Chatham. The grounds of Wilton House were used for Hyde Park and the grounds of Somerley were used for Hampstead Heath. Garden scenes were filmed at Painshill near Cobham and the Commissioner's House in Chatham.

Ranger's House is used as the exterior of the Bridgerton family's house in London

Filming locations included Ranger's House in Greenwich (standing in for the Bridgerton House in London exterior); Halton House at RAF Halton (Bridgerton House interior, Featheringtons' interior); Wilton House (Simon's Hastings House, Clyvedon estate interior, St James's Palace throne room); Syon House and Badminton House (Hastings House); Castle Howard (Clyvedon estate); Coneysthorpe (Clyvedon village); Hampton Court Palace and Lancaster House (St. James's Palace); Holburne Museum (Lady Danbury's estate); Hatfield House (Featheringtons' interior); No. 1 Royal Crescent (Grosvenor Square); Queen's House and Somerley (Somerset House); and Dorney Court (coaching inn).

Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens no longer exists in its entirety. The production team recreated it for Lady Danbury's ball by combining the remaining parts with Castle Howard and Stowe Park. The banqueting room at the Guildhall, Bath was used for another ball as well as the Great Hall at Leigh Court in Somerset.

Anthony Bridgerton and Simon Basset meet in the real-life Reform Club on Pall Mall in central London. The scene in which Lady Featherington takes Marina to the slums was filmed at Chatham Dockyard in Kent. Boxing scenes were also filmed here in addition to Normansfield Theatre in Teddington. Theatre scenes were filmed at the Hackney Empire. A café in Bath, Pickled Greens, was used as the site of the Modiste shop and the Bathrooms at No.5 store on Trim Street became the site of Gunter's Tea Shop.

The costuming was led by Ellen Mirojnick and involved over two hundred people and five months of preparation to create 5,000 costumes.

Season 2

Production on the second season began in March 2021. In May 2021, it was reported that the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead refused permission to build a film set for the second season in Sunninghill Park near Windsor, despite royal approval. On July 15, 2021, production on the second season was paused for 24 hours when a crew member tested positive for COVID-19, but resumed the following day. However, on July 17, production was halted indefinitely following a second positive test. Production resumed in August 2021. Production for the second season wrapped on November 20, 2021.

New filming locations for season 2 included Wrotham Park (standing in for the Bridgertons' country home Aubrey Hall); West Wycombe Park (Aubrey Hall interior and the Crane estate); Wrest Park, Ivinghoe Beacon, and Ashridge (the Orangery and Aubrey Hall grounds); the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club (Royal Ascot); Old Royal Naval College; Windsor Great Park (woods scenes); Goldsmiths' Hall (Buckingham palace throne room); and Wilton's Music Hall (feminist meeting place). The real St James's Church is in the series. The art display at Petworth House was used for the museum scene, with Royal Artillery Barracks used as the exterior. The finale ball was filmed at Basildon Park.

Season 3

The third season began principal photography in July 2022 and wrapped in March 2023.

New filming locations for Bridgerton in season 3 included Claydon House, Squerryes Court (garden party scenes), Grimsthorpe Castle (Hawkins residence), Basildon Park (Arnold residence) Blenheim Palace (standing in for Buckingham House) and Woburn Walk (Modiste dress shop) in London.

Season 4

The fourth season began principal photography on September 16, 2024.

Music

Further information: Music of Bridgerton

American composer and pianist Kris Bowers composed and arranged the score for the series. Bowers wrote and composed the first season's soundtrack, featuring nineteen songs. Musicians recorded the score remotely from their home studios during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Season 1

The first season featured orchestral covers of contemporary popular music, which director and executive producer Julie Anne Robinson said was inspired by the use of classic rock songs in the 2001 film A Knight's Tale. Songs featured included Ariana Grande's "Thank U, Next", Maroon 5's "Girls Like You", Shawn Mendes's "In My Blood" and Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy", all four of which performed by Vitamin String Quartet. Also included are Celeste's "Strange" performed by Bowers, and Taylor Swift's "Wildest Dreams" performed by Duomo. Bowers also included modern interpretations of classical music, such as Bach's Cello Suite No. 6 in D major from Peter Gregson's Recomposed by Peter Gregson: Bach – The Cello Suites and Vivaldi's The Four Seasons from Max Richter's Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons. The first season also included JPOLND's "The End" which has a "swingy melody but intense lyrics."

Season 2

In the second season, covers include Nirvana's "Stay Away" and Robyn's "Dancing On My Own" by Vitamin String Quartet, Madonna's "Material Girl," "Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham" from the soundtrack of the film of the same name and Calvin Harris' "How Deep Is Your Love" by Bowers. Also included are Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" and Pink's "What About Us" by Duomo, Harry Styles' "Sign of the Times" by Steve Horner, Rihanna's "Diamonds" by Hannah V and Joe Rodwell and Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball" by Midnight String Quartet. To promote the show, Morisette appeared in a video performing "You Oughta Know" with Duomo. When discussing the music of season two, music supervisor Justin Kramps explained that "even for these songs that are just huge songs that everyone knows, [an instrumental version] still breathes new life and brings them to a new audience, and in a different way. Pop is where we start, because it fits the style of the show, and it's often using these super-recognizable songs that just add a lot of joy, which is what pop does in general."

Season 3

In the third season, covers include Gayle's, "abcdefu," BTS' "Dynamite," Nick Jonas' "Jealous," Sia's "Cheap Thrills" featuring Sean Paul. Also featured are Billie Eilish's "Happier Than Ever," Taylor Swift's "Snow on the Beach" featuring Lana Del Rey, and Pitbull's "Give Me Everything" featuring Afrojack, Ne-Yo, and Nayer. The cover of "Give Me Everything" went viral on TikTok. During the premiere in New York City Tori Kelly performed a new song "All I Want" which will feature in Part 2 as a cover.

Release

Season 1

The eight episodes of the first season of Bridgerton began streaming on Netflix on December 25, 2020.

Season 2

A preview of a scene from season 2 aired during Netflix's September 2021 Tudum: Extended Talent Panel, which was followed by first look stills. On February 14, 2022, the first teaser trailer for the second season was released. A world premiere was held at Tate Modern on March 22, 2022, in London, England prior to the season's eight episodes being released on March 25, 2022.

Due to a three-month commitment as the lead in the acclaimed West End play Cock, Jonathan Bailey had missed "press, talk shows, FYC events, and even the Met Gala" as part of the show's promotion.

Season 3

The first part of season 3 premiered on May 16, 2024, with four episodes. The second part premiered on June 13, 2024, wrapping up the third season.

Reception

Critical response

Critical response of Bridgerton

Season	Rotten Tomatoes	Metacritic
1	87% (100 reviews)	75 (34 reviews)
2	78% (94 reviews)	70 (32 reviews)
3	87% (76 reviews)	69 (26 reviews)

Season 1

For the first season, the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 87% based on 100 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Sumptuous design, soapy drama, and a sterling cast make Bridgerton a delightful treat." Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 75 out of 100 based on 34 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Kristen Baldwin of Entertainment Weekly gave the series a B+ and wrote, "Bridgerton, it seems, is a wonderful diversion for those who love Pride & Prejudice but wish it had more stairway sex." Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun-Times gave the series four out of four stars and called it "A show that will give you that unmistakable binge twinge and have you activating that "Next Episode" time and again, until there are no more "Next Episodes"." British GQ described Bridgerton as a cross between Downton Abbey and Gossip Girl, but noted that it "may just end up being another disappointment" and "it could have been brilliant." Salamishah Tillet of The New York Times said "Bridgerton provides a blueprint for British period shows in which Black characters can thrive within the melodramatic story lines, extravagant costumes and bucolic beauty [...] without having to be servants or enslaved." Erum Salam of Cosmopolitan wrote "I kept wanting more. I wanted more explanations of how race factored into this society..." Carolyn Hinds from The Observer stated "Bridgerton has been praised as a racially diverse show set in the Regency Era." Vanity Fair's Caroline Framke describes the sex in the series "isn't altogether shocking material for Shondaland to mine for its first drama series absent broadcast restraints."

The first season's 6th episode drew criticism with regard to the non-consensual nature of Simon and Daphne's lovemaking, which amounted to marital rape. The episode depicts Daphne, while having sex with Simon, changing her position to be on top, preventing Simon from pulling out of her when he climaxes despite his objections, to ensure he impregnates her. Described as one of the toxic plot points of their relationship, it further drew scrutiny due to the fact that the deceit was never addressed as sexual assault in the series. Critics pointed out that it failed to acknowledge the difficulties of male victims of rape and the further fetishization of black men in media.

Season 2

Pall-mall features as a pastime for the Bridgerton siblings in Season 2

For the second season, Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 78% based on 94 reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's critics consensus states, "The risqué thrill may have faded, but Bridgerton remains a compulsive episode-turner in this delightful sophomore season." Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 based on 32 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Kristen Baldwin of Entertainment Weekly gave the series an A− writing, "With a second season that's more clever, moving, and emotionally complex than the first, this period drama... proves that it's not just a titillating trifle." The Hollywood Reporter's Angie Hahn echoed the sentiment describing the season as "older and wiser" than its predecessor's "rampant horniness" with an effective central romance that prioritized "a meeting of minds, played out over quick-witted arguments outside ballrooms and vicious competition during a friendly family game of pall-mall." Peter Travers of ABC praised the season writing, "Kudos to season two for digging deeper into the emotional lives of its characters and continuing the colorblind casting that creates a utopia in which diversity is so ingrained it's hardly worth a mention."

Alison Herman of The Ringer commented that Season 1 is "sexy without quite being erotic" while "Season 2 is the reverse. There's not a lot of sex, but in the crackling chemistry and relentless self-denial that defines Anthony and Kate's dynamic, there's plenty of eroticism." Emma Clarke of The Independent argued that, "it is precisely the lack of physicality that makes this season (of the show and of courtship) so... well, sexy." Scott Bryan of the BBC wrote that the season serves as antidote to the "always static, laboured and slow" period dramas, adding that it comes with "real energy, it feels so modern (even though it is set in the past) and even though it feels extravagant, it doesn't feel too highbrow. It is refreshingly accessible."

Kevin Fallon of The Daily Beast elaborating on Bailey's "exquisite lead performance," wrote that "he has an exceptional ability to carry his angst, pain, and guilt with him without bogging down things into a somber drag." The Telegraph' s Anita Singh wrote that Bailey "brings more soul to the role of Lord Bridgerton than Page ever did with the Duke," with Randy Myers of Mercury News adding that Bailey "has a gift at comedic timing." Proma Khosla of Mashable concluded that with "Bailey and Ashley, Bridgerton Season 2 strikes gold" as they deliver "heaping, smoldering helpings of sexual tension" for "their chemistry is nothing short of explosive."

Season 3

For the third season, Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 87% based on 76 reviews, with an average rating of 7.0/10. The website's critics consensus states, "The hot goss in London remains juicy as ever in Bridgerton's third season, which benefits tremendously from Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton's endearing chemistry." Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 69 out of 100 based on 26 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". News publications, charities, disabled influencers and fans picked-up on the incidental disability portrayal in the first half of Season 3. Thousands of social media posts showed fans were thrilled to see Bridgerton include disabled actors playing characters whose conditions were visible and yet their disabilities were not the focus of the storyline. Lady Stowell used modern BSL, Lord Remington had a bath chair and Neurodivergence was also well considered with Francesca Bridgerton and her love interest, John Stirling, being "autistic-coded".

Audience viewership

Season 1

On January 27, 2021, Netflix announced that 82 million households have watched at least two minutes of the season amounting to 625 million hours viewed. It was the most-watched original series launch on the service at the time of its premiere, prior to being surpassed by Squid Game in October 2021. Caroline Framke of Variety attributed this huge viewership to "the perfect storm of a perfectly timed premiere (Christmas Day of 2020), providing silly and sexy entertainment after the first terrible year of COVID."

Season 2

Season 2 premiered on March 25, 2022, and debuted number one in 92 countries on the platform. It was also the most viewed show on United States television screens for three weeks per Nielsen Media Research. Season 2 amassed 193 million viewing hours in its opening weekend, the highest opening for any English-language Netflix series at the time. It also broke the record for most viewed English-language series in a single week at that time, with 251.74 million viewing hours from March 28 to April 3. The first season also re-entered Netflix's top ten in second place. By April 19, Bridgerton's second season had overtaken its predecessor as the most watched English-language television series on Netflix at the time with 627.11 million hours viewed since its March 25, 2022, launch. This viewing numbers went up to 656.16 million by the 28-day mark.

Nielsen Media Research, analyzing the 2.55 billion minutes viewed on United States television screens in the first three days of season 2's availability (double all others across streamers for the week of March 21), characterized Bridgerton's audience as "diverse and broad". The firm found one third of viewers to be Hispanic or African American and an even split in popularity across the 18–34, 35–49, and 50–64 age groups at 25% each. The only exception was gender parity, with 76% of the audience reported to be female. It added 3.2 billion minutes viewed in its second week on top of the chart. It topped the chart for a third week with 1.6 billion minutes viewed.

Season 3

In 2023, between seasons 2 and 3, Netflix rolled out a new, different method of counting viewership, which is to divide the number of hours watched by a show's runtime. The platform also expanded the measurement window from 28 days to 91 days. Under this new method of measurement, season 3 part 1 received 45.05 million views in its first week, and then 25.3 million views in its second week, 11.6 million in its third, and 6.9 million in its fourth. After season 3 part 2 debuted, the overall season received 28 million views that debut week, 16.5 million views the following week, 6.6 million views the third week, and 4 million the fourth.

Season 3 became the second most watched series on Netflix during the first half of 2024, with 92 million views.

Accolades

Year	Award	Category	Nominees	Result	Ref.
2021	AFI Awards	Top Television Program	Bridgerton	Won
	Black Reel Awards	Outstanding Actor, Drama Series	Regé-Jean Page	Nominated
		Outstanding Supporting Actress, Drama Series	Adjoa Andoh	Won
	British Academy Television Awards	Virgin TV's Must-See Moment	"Penelope is revealed as Lady Whistledown"	Nominated
	Costume Designers Guild Awards	Excellence in Period Television	Ellen Mirojnick and John W. Glaser III (for "Diamond of the First Water")	Nominated
	Directors Guild of America Awards	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series	Julie Anne Robinson (for "Diamond of the First Water")	Nominated
	Gold Derby Awards	Drama Supporting Actor	Jonathan Bailey	Nominated
	Golden Reel Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Music Score and Musical for Episodic Long Form Broadcast Media	Brittany DuBay (for "Shock and Delight")	Nominated
	Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards	Best Streaming Series, Drama	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Best Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama	Regé-Jean Page	Nominated
	Hollywood Music in Media Awards	Best Original Score in a TV Show/Limited Series	Kris Bowers	Nominated
	Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards	Best Television Series, Limited or Miniseries or New Media Series – Best Period and/or Character Make-Up	Marc Pilcher, Lynda J. Pearce, Claire Matthews, and Louise Bannell	Nominated
		Best Television Series, Limited or Miniseries or New Media Series – Best Period and/or Character Hair Styling	Marc Pilcher, Lynda J. Pearce, Adam James Phillips, and Tania Couper	Won
	MTV Movie & TV Awards	Best Show	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Best Breakthrough Performance	Regé-Jean Page	Won
		Best Kiss	Regé-Jean Page and Phoebe Dynevor	Nominated
	NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Drama Series	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series	Regé-Jean Page	Won
		Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Adjoa Andoh	Nominated
	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Drama Series	Chris Van Dusen, Shonda Rhimes, Betsy Beers, Scott Collins, Alison Eakle, Sara Fischer, Julia Quinn, Leila Cohan-Miccio, Jonathan Igla, Janet Lin, Holden Chang, Sarah Dollard, and Sarada McDermott	Nominated
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series	Regé-Jean Page (for "Art of the Swoon")	Nominated
		Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series	Julie Anne Robinson (for "Diamond of the First Water")	Nominated
	Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards	Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance	Julie Andrews (for "Diamond Of The First Water")	Nominated
		Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series	Kelly Valentine Hendry	Nominated
		Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour)	Jeffrey Jur (for "Art of the Swoon")	Nominated
		Outstanding Period Costumes	Ellen Mirojnick, John W. Glaser III, Sanaz Missaghian, and Kenny Crouch (for "Diamond of the First Water")	Nominated
		Outstanding Period and/or Character Hairstyling	Marc Pilcher, Lynda J. Pearce, Claire Matthews, Adam James Phillips, Tania Couper, and Lou Bannell (for "Art of the Swoon")	Won
		Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score)	Kris Bowers (for "Diamond Of The First Water")	Nominated
		Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music	Kris Bowers and Michael Dean Parsons	Nominated
		Outstanding Music Supervision	Alexandra Patsavas (for "Diamond Of The First Water")	Nominated
		Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Period or Fantasy Program (One Hour or More)	Will Hughes-Jones, Dominic Devine, and Gina Cromwell (for "After the Rain")	Nominated
	Producers Guild of America Awards	Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Drama	Chris Van Dusen, Shonda Rhimes, Betsy Beers, Scott Collins, Alison Eakle, Sara Fischer, Sarada McDermott, Holden Chang, and Tom Verica	Nominated
	Satellite Awards	Best Actor in a Drama Series	Regé-Jean Page	Nominated
		Best Actress in a Drama Series	Phoebe Dynevor	Nominated
	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series	Cast of Bridgerton	Nominated
		Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series	Regé-Jean Page	Nominated
	Television Critics Association Awards	Program of the Year	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Outstanding Achievement in Drama		Nominated
		Outstanding New Program		Nominated
	Rose d'Or	Drama		Nominated
2022	Black Reel Awards	Outstanding Directing, Drama Series	Cheryl Dunye (for "The Viscount Who Loved Me")	Won
		Outstanding Supporting Actress, Drama Series	Adjoa Andoh	Nominated
		Outstanding Music Supervision	Alexandra Pastvas	Nominated
		Outstanding Musical Score	Kris Bowers	Nominated
	Grammy Awards	Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media	Kris Bowers	Nominated
	Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards	Best Actress in a Streaming Series, Drama	Simone Ashley	Nominated
	MTV Movie & TV Awards	Best Musical Moment	Anthony and Kate dancing to Midnight String Quartet's cover of "Wrecking Ball"	Nominated
	National Television Awards	Best Returning Drama	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Best Performance in a Drama	Simone Ashley	Nominated
			Jonathan Bailey	Nominated
		Rising Star	Charithra Chandran	Nominated
	Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards	Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance	Julie Andrews (for "Capital R Rake")	Nominated
		Outstanding Period Costumes	Sophie Canale, Dougie Hawkes, Sarah June Mills, Charlotte Armstrong, Sanaz Missaghian, and Kevin Pratten-Stone (for "Harmony")	Nominated
		Outstanding Period and/or Character Hairstyling	Erika Okvist, Jenny Rhodes-McLean, and Sim Camps (for "The Viscount Who Loved Me")	Won
	Set Decorators Society of America Awards	Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a One Hour Period Series	Gina Cromwell and Will Hughes-Jones	Nominated
	TV Choice Awards	Best Actor Drama	Jonathan Bailey	Nominated
2023	NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Drama Series	Bridgerton	Nominated
		Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Adjoa Andoh	Nominated
		Outstanding Soundtrack/Compilation Album	Bridgerton Season Two (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series) (by Kris Bowers)	Nominated
2024	National Television Awards	Returning Drama	Bridgerton	Won

Cultural impact

Fashion and interior design trends influenced or made popular by the series have been dubbed "Regencycore" or "the Bridgerton effect." Lyst reported an increase in searches for items such as corsets, headpieces, and elbow-length gloves after the series' premiere. The series' female leads, Daphne and Kate, were also linked to a popularity in the colors sky blue and lilac respectively. In 2021, Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear wrote a concept album based on characters and situations in season 1 of the series titled The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, which won the 2022 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. After the two presented the songs from the album live in concert at the Kennedy Center in July 2022, Netflix sued them for copyright infringement.

To ring in the second season, an official "Queen's Ball" was held in Washington DC, Chicago, Montréal, and Los Angeles, with similar events and experiences taking place in London and Johannesburg. Bloomingdale's put together a Bridgerton-themed pop-up collection and tea bar, displaying real costumes from the series in the U.S. for the first time in its 59th Street windows.

After season two featured the main characters playing pall-mall, a lawn game considered to be the precursor to croquet, retailer John Lewis reported a 90% rise in sales for croquet sets. There was also a notable increase in internet searches and purchases of tiaras and corsets after season two's premiere.

Stately homes around England saw an uptick in interest and visitors. Regarding Ranger's House, Chris Small of English Heritage said, "Since the launch of Bridgerton in 2020 we have seen many people who were previously unaware of the site inspired to visit." Walking tours of the filming locations of the series have also been created, including an official one by Netflix. Castle Howard opened an exhibition titled Castle Howard on Screen: From Brideshead to Bridgerton in May 2022.

The 33rd season finale episode of The Simpsons on May 22, 2022, featured Marge and her friends watching a period drama called "Tunnelton" with a Lady Whistledown-sounding narrator, and a character emerging drenched from a lake, like Anthony in the fifth episode of the second season.

Netflix tripled its brand partnerships for season 3, and the Queen's Ball expanded to a dozen cities in addition to an afternoon tea event at the Lanesborough in London. The Wrap called Bridgerton fans a "ripe testing group" for this international merchandising and live-experience strategy from Netflix, comparing it to the likes of Disney and Universal franchises.

Historical inaccuracies

A portrait of Queen Charlotte, painted by Thomas Gainsborough

Chris Van Dusen has said that the show "is a reimagined world, we're not a history lesson, it's not a documentary. What we're really doing with the show is marrying history and fantasy in what I think is a very exciting way. One approach that we took to that is our approach to race." Though Bridgerton takes place during the Regency era, Van Dusen notes that it ultimately is "not a history lesson." The Bridgerton family, Lady Whistledown, and most of the other characters in the show are fictional.

The theory that Queen Charlotte may have had African ancestry has been called an unhistorical assertion by most scholars. In an interview with Insider magazine, American historian Marlene Koenig said the show's representation of Regency-era London was more diverse than it was in reality, adding that "diversity as we know what the word means did not exist" in Britain during that period. Some classical music pieces used in the first season were composed later than 1813, the year of the first season. Examples include Dmitri Shostakovich's Suite for Variety Orchestra, which was written sometime after 1956, and "Belle nuit, ô nuit d'amour" from Jacques Offenbach's 1881 opera The Tales of Hoffmann.

Historians have pointed out inaccuracies in clothing, such as the show using corsets to represent the oppression placed on women in society instead of supportive undergarments they were considered as in the Regency era. In a scene from season 1, Daphne is seen with bruises on her back from the corset; however, at the time it was common to wear a chemise under it to prevent this. Fabrics and patterns appearing in the show are too modern compared to the ones used in the historical period in which the events are supposed to take place. Other historical inaccuracies include the lack of bonnets present within the show and the contemporary styles of the fabrics and colors. However, a majority of the show's historical inaccuracies regarding clothing are intentional. The show does not reflect an accurate portrayal of the Regency era but rather a world that "borders on historical fantasy." The show depicts a dramatization of the Regency era, where the show is "rooted in Regency times but the volume is turned up."

Themes

Gender

A recurring topic throughout the show is gender, especially the role of women in British high society. Chris Van Dusen aimed for the show to have a "running, modern commentary about how, over the last 200 years, everything has changed and nothing has changed, for both women and men."

With the focus on each year's social season, Daphne, Kate, and the other women struggle against the societal expectations held for them. Daphne Bridgerton, the Queen's Diamond of her season, fights to maintain her high reputation in society and avoid ruin while still marrying for love. Kate Sharma, considered "too old" for marrying, attempts to regain her family's place in high society as she tries to set her sister, Edwina, up to marry well. Eloise Bridgerton, uninterested in marrying and wanting to pursue a more meaningful life, finds herself more politically involved.

The men, on the other hand, often face lower stakes to their reputations. After overhearing Anthony say that he desires a more agreeable wife, Kate confronts him on his viewpoints toward women and argues that Anthony's high standards for women do not match the standards he has for himself.

Race

A notable, modernized twist on the show is the diverse cast of characters. Straying from the source novels, Van Dusen "used Queen Charlotte as a centerpiece to weave racial equality in the show." With Queen Charlotte cast as a Black woman, Van Dusen explains, "Could she have used her power to elevate other people of color in society? Could she have given them titles and lands and dukedoms?"

When Simon Basset rejects the idea of pursuing Daphne Bridgerton, Lady Danbury explains that love conquers all, using Queen Charlotte and King George as an example of how their marriage had changed society. However, Simon also counters that, even though Queen Charlotte is currently in power, "Black progress is fragile and dependent on the whims of whichever white king is in charge."

Literature

Bridgerton also explores "power of the written word," with authors such as Lady Whistledown having immense influence over the social season with her Society Papers. Similar to how media can strongly sway public opinion, Van Dusen makes the statement that "social media is kind of like a modern-day corset."

Throughout the show, Lady Whistledown releases Society Papers that comment on notable figures during the social season, whether it be praising them or airing out their secrets. The pamphlets' influence is enough to sway even Queen Charlotte herself, who seeks to find the author of the Society Papers in order to shut them down.

Prequel miniseries

Main article: Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

In May 2021, Netflix ordered a limited prequel series from Shondaland to focus on young Queen Charlotte, a character who does not appear in the Bridgerton novels. Rhimes wrote the spin-off and served as executive producer alongside Betsy Beers and Tom Verica.

Rosheuvel, Andoh, Gemmell, and Fleet reprise their roles, while India Amarteifio, Michelle Fairley, Corey Mylchreest, and Arsema Thomas were cast, together with Connie Jenkins-Greig, who plays young Violet. A novelization of the series written by Rhimes and Quinn was released by Avon Books in 2023.

In April 2022, production designer Dave Arrowsmith was fired from the series following allegations of abusive behavior and bullying on set. In September 2022, Netflix announced that Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story would be the title for the series and released the first look.

External links

• Bridgerton at IMDb 
• Bridgerton on Netflix
• Official season 2 premiere screenplay