Everything we know so far about 'Bridgerton' season 3

• Season 3 of "Bridgerton" will premiere on May 16, 2024.

• The season will follow the romance between Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton.

• The new season will be split into two parts, released in May 16, 2024 and June 13, 2024.

"Bridgerton" season three will be released in two installments.

Netflix has announced that "Bridgerton" returns for its third season on May 16, 2024.

However, for the first time, the season will be released in two installments.

Part one premieres on May 16, while part two will arrive a month later on June 13.

Here is everything we know so far about the upcoming season.

"Bridgerton" season three will focus on the romance between Colin Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington.

"Bridgerton" season three will focus on the romance between Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan).

While previous seasons of the hit Netflix show have followed the "Bridgerton" books by Julia Quinn in order, season three will skip ahead to the fourth book, "Romancing Mister Bridgerton."

In the book, Colin tries to win over Penelope after she stopped having a crush on him, and he discovers her secret identity as the gossip writer Lady Whistledown.

Coughlan announced the news at Netflix's FYSEE exhibition in May 2022.

"Like Lady Whistledown, I have been keeping a secret for quite some time and I can confirm to you all that season three is Colin and Penelope's love story," Coughlan said. "I have kept that secret since two weeks into season two. This is the first time I am saying it here."

Similar to the book it's based on, Colin will be the one pursuing Penelope.

In the upcoming episodes, Penelope will move on from her crush after Colin mocked her at the end of season two.

"Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) has finally given up on her long-held crush on Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) after hearing his disparaging words about her last season," the plot summary reads.

"She has, however, decided it's time to take a husband, preferably one who will provide her with enough independence to continue her double life as Lady Whistledown, far away from her mother and sisters. But lacking in confidence, Penelope's attempts on the marriage mart fail spectacularly."

Colin attempts to help Penelope find a husband, thus creating circumstances for their romance to bloom.

"Meanwhile, Colin has returned from his summer travels with a new look and a serious sense of swagger. But he's disheartened to realize that Penelope, the one person who always appreciated him as he was, is giving him the cold shoulder," the summary continues.

"Eager to win back her friendship, Colin offers to mentor Penelope in the ways of confidence to help her find a husband this season. But when his lessons start working a little too well, Colin must grapple with whether his feelings for Penelope are truly just friendly."

Colin's siblings Eloise and Benedict will play important roles in season three.

The Netflix plot summary states that season three will show the fallout between Penelope and Colin's sister, Eloise (Claudia Jessie).

At the end of season two, Eloise discovers that her best friend Penelope is Lady Whistledown. This comes after Penelope publicly disgraces Eloise in one of her Whistledown newspapers to save herself from Queen Charlotte's (Golda Rosheuvel) persecution.

"Complicating matters for Penelope is her rift with Eloise (Claudia Jessie), who has found a new friend in a very unlikely place, while Penelope's growing presence in the ton makes it all the more difficult to keep her Lady Whistledown alter ego a secret," the Netflix summary reads.

Jess Brownell, who is the new "Bridgerton" showrunner after Chris Van Dusen's departure, told Variety in May 2022 that Colin's older brother, Benedict (Luke Thompson), will be a "vital part of season three."

In the book series, Benedict's love story comes before Colin's. However, season three might sow the seeds for Benedict's eventual romance.

Brownell also confirmed that the series will not include Penelope's weight loss story from the books.

"We think that Penelope is beautiful, and I don't think it's really a part of her story," Brownell told Variety.

The rest of the Bridgerton family will still be involved in the upcoming season.

New showrunner Brownell told Variety that Colin's older brother Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and his brother's wife, Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley), will return for the third season.

However, Regé-Jean Page, who starred as Daphne's lover and husband Simon Basset in season one, is adamant that he will not return to the show and told Variety that the show is free to recast his role.

Last year, Netflix announced that Francesca Bridgerton had been recast in season three after Ruby Stokes left to lead another Netflix project. Hannah Dodd will play the role in season three.

Ruth Gemmell, Will Tilston, and Florence Hunt are expected to return as Lady Violet Bridgerton, Gregory Bridgerton, and Hyacinth Bridgerton, respectively.

Phoebe Dynevor said that she will not make an appearance in season three.

In an interview with Screen Rant in January, Dynevor said that she may be a part of future seasons, but not the upcoming one.

"Sadly not in season three," the actor said. "Potentially in the future. But in season three, I'm just excited to watch as a viewer."

She later said in another interview with Variety: "I did my two seasons. I've done what I wanted to do with that character and she had a great arc. If they ask me back in the future, who knows? For now, I am just really enjoying having new experiences and making films and we'll see what happens."

Four new characters have joined the cast, possibly as alternative love interests for Penelope and Colin.

Marcus Anderson, played by Daniel Francis, is described by Netflix as a "charismatic presence who lights up any room he enters, attracting the notice of certain matriarchs in the ton — and the ire of others."

Meanwhile, Sam Phillips will play Lord Debling, who is described as having "unusual interests."

James Phoon plays Harry Dankworth. "What Dankworth lacks in wit and intelligence, he more than makes up for with serious good looks," says Netflix's description.

In October 2022, Deadline reported that Hannah New had been cast in a new role. Best known for her role as Eleanor Guthrie in Starz's "Black Sails" series, and she will play a widow called Lady Tilley Arnold. Like Lady Danbury, she now enjoys her independence both financially and with romantic suitors.

On Christmas Day, five new photos were released from the upcoming season.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Bromnell elaborated on why they decided to skip over Benedict's story to focus on Colin and Penelope's.

"We've spent two seasons really getting to know Pen and Colin. We've been watching Pen's crush and seeing how oblivious Colin is to it. That's a dynamic that you can only play out for so long before something has to change," she said.

"On the Benedict side, he's such a fun character and such a fan favorite that we are really excited to play with him for a little bit more and let him have more fun before he settles down," she said.

We got our first real look at Anthony and Kate, who appear to still be enjoying some newlywed bliss.

"It was really thrilling to have Simone and Johnny back and getting to see what Anthony and Kate's married life looks like," Bromnell told EW.

Kanthony shippers, you can relax, because she added that the writers were "not interested" in any adding any new conflict into their relationship, and instead were focused on creating a "more playful, lovey space" for the two.

Marina Thompson, as played by Ruby Barker, will not be appearing in season three, as "that is a chapter that's been closed."

Bromnell told EW that Colin's previous relationship with Marina, which was a huge part of season one (and the focus of an episode of season two) is officially over.

"Colin closed that chapter with Marina last season, and he really took Marina's message to heart about focusing on his own stuff and not projecting romantic fantasies onto the past," she said. "When he returns this year, that is a chapter that's been closed."

Barker said on a podcast interview that she didn't feel supported by Netflix as she dealt with her mental health, and she would not be returning to the show. "Not a single person from Netflix, not a single person from Shondaland, since I have had two psychotic breaks from that show, have even contacted me or even emailed me to ask if I'm OK," Barker said on an episode of the LOAF Podcast.

We also got our first look at the new Francesca Bridgerton. Hannah Dodd replaced Ruby Stokes as one of the younger Bridgerton siblings in season three.

In May 2022, Netflix and Shondaland announced that Stokes, who had played the sixth Bridgerton child Francesca for the first two seasons, would be leaving the show to star in another Netflix series, "Lockwood & Co."

She was replaced by Dodd, who has appeared in "Enola Holmes 2," "Anatomy of a Scandal," and "Find Me in Paris."

While "friends to lovers is the general arc," the Bridgerton family will always be a main focus of the show.

As Bromnell told EW, this season will see Penelope and Colin "really stepping into their power," but the rest of the family will play important parts. She teased that Violet's backstory, as shown  in "Queen Charlotte," will continue to be explored in season three.

This article was originally published on August 22, 2022, and was most recently updated on December 25, 2023.

Read the original article on Insider