As Bridgerton fans bid farewell to Sophie and Benedict (for now), we’re already thinking ahead to when we will get the next dose of the Regency-era romance.
Season 4 brought us many subplots to follow, like Hyacinth’s eagerness to debut, Violet’s surprise un-proposal, and Eloise’s slight change of heart about getting married. The season 4 extended ending even teased Eloise’s debut, which follows the next book, To Sir Phillip, With Love. The ending cleverly shied away from disclosing the real lead for season 5, leaving some fans shocked to find out that season 5 will not follow the expected order. Instead, the TV adaptation will skip to Francesca’s debut as a young widow.
One thing that makes Bridgerton stand out against competing romantic period dramas is the constant pursuit of inclusivity– giving the show a modern spin– through the vision of author Julia Quinn, producer Shonda Rimes, and the host of Netflix writers and directors. Season 5 may be the most daring season yet, as it will highlight a queer love story.
Though the TV series order will diverge once again from the book chronology, I think fans are okay with this change because we get to see a little bit more of Eloise’s character arc develop before her hopeful debut on the marriage mart. Also, Francesca’s story and performance in season 4 were so touching and raw that it makes sense to continue her love journey sooner rather than later.
As fans already know, Michael was brought to the Netflix-verse as Michaela in season 3, and we got to see more of her dynamic with Francesca in season 4. Though the pair started off rocky as they competed for John’s attention, they learned to make space for each other just shy of John’s sudden death. Yet, when Francesca needed Michaela during her time of mourning, Michaela deserted her. Needless to say, there will be much ground to cover with the season 5 take on the sixth novel, When He Was Wicked.
In a recent post by Netflix Tudum, where the streaming platform announced Francesca and Michaela as the lead couple for season 5, Hannah Dodd (Francesca) and Masali Baduza (Michaela) also shared their thoughts on the upcoming season. The actresses expressed that the season aims to give Francesca and Michaela their happily ever after, while acknowledging and celebrating a population that has been relatively ignored in period dramas. One word that popped up quite a bit in the interview was "yearning." The Bridgerton franchise has become known and loved for its slow-burn romances, so it will be exciting to see how the two characters tackle societal norms and explore a love connection.
Bridgerton season 5 is officially in production, so stay tuned for more updates! Speaking of yearning, we may still have a while before we see Francesca and Michaela's story play out on screen. If this year’s production is anything like the last, we can likely expect a wrap within 8-9 months and the season 5 premiere in early 2028!