Spoiler alert: This interview contains spoilers for „Old Friends,” the fourth episode of Netflix’s „Bridgerton” Season 3.
“For God’s sake, Penelope Fetherington. Are you going to marry me or not?”
The first half of „Bridgerton” Season 3 ends with these breathtaking words, as Colin (Luke Newton) proposes to Penelope (Nicola Coughlan). What a rock! Will Penelope say yes? Will she reveal that she is Lady Whistledown? Colin can Be Still in love?
Still, this moment is just one development in a half-season full of drama, deceit and breakdowns. Fortunately, showrunner Jess Brownell delivers Variety Insights into the season’s biggest moments.
The carriage scene is a major turning point for Colin and Penelope. Can you discuss the writing and filming?
The carriage scene in the book works a bit differently. This is the moment when Colin realizes that Penelope is Lady Whistledown, but in homage to that scene, we’re still treated to the moment when Colin begins to see Penelope differently — or at least announces that he’s starting to see her differently. It was a big moment for Colin, someone who tried to be aloof and a man of few words. He’s feeling the pressure of holding it all together this season, and suddenly it snaps in that carriage scene.
We originally envisioned Pen and Colin sitting next to each other so they had this intimate conversation. But still [director] Andrew [Ahn] The idea was to stage them across from each other as it is easier to film in a carriage on a stage, but when Colin wants to express himself to Penelope, he has to get down on his knees. It makes for a nice scene for a man who has romantically ignored this woman for two seasons to beg for her.
In the books, Colin discovers that Penelope is Lady Whistledown before getting engaged – why did you decide to change the order of things?
We’ve been watching the Lady Whistledown hunt for two seasons. Rani has been hot on the trail and we felt like it was time to take a break from that storyline. This will become a larger thread in the back half, but we wanted to focus on Penelope’s search for her husband for a moment and let the relationship between Colin and Penelope build a little bit before that secret land.
When you’re adapting the books, how do you manage to tell a new story for television while still satisfying loyal readers of the series?
I always try to honor the spirit and emotional journey of the book, and in the first week of the writers’ room, we always sit down and pick out key moments in the book: key set pieces, key settings, key scenes we want to see. I’d say all those moments are there this season, and they’re not necessarily in the same order.
As far as how much we change, that has to do with externalizing the plot. Much of the plot in a novel can be an internal monologue or a silent conversation between two characters trying to find ways in our vast world in which we are so concerned with size and presence in the world. We need to find ways to externalize those conspiracies. For example, that’s why we brought up the sexy school plot between Penelope and Colin. It’s a way to externalize some of the conversations they have in the book about faith and popularity.
Is there a standout scene or moment this season? Are you excited to see the fans?
There’s a set piece I’m excited about in episode 5 where we have all of our regular characters together in one place – them and only them. There is an orchestrated chaos at the end of that chapter where the tension continues to build and it almost plays out like a theater production because it all takes place in one room. Fans are excited to see the collection.
What else can you tease about the upcoming second half of the season?
The back half of the season was in many ways the opposite world of the first half. If the entire first half is playful and lighthearted, once we jump into the second half, you’ll have more intense clashes. This includes Penelope hiding from Colin that she is Lady Whistledown and her relationship with Eloise is still not in a great place so the tension starts to rise.
This interview has been edited and approved. The second half of „Bridgerton” Season 3 will debut on Netflix on June 13.