‘Bridgerton’ Season 4 Focuses on Benedict’s Love Story: Everything We Know

After the enthusiastic reviews for Bridgerton Season 3, fans are on the edge of their seats, excited to see what happens next.

And while the romance series written by Julia Quinn offers at least five more love stories for high society’s most popular family, Netflix has finally confirmed which couple will be in the spotlight next.

The streamer released a teaser in July 2024, which confirmed that second son Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) will be the next to find love. The clip featured several key moments of the character from past seasons before cutting to new footage in which Thompson is told it’s time for him to try on a new suit.

“I already have an outfit for tonight,” emphasizes the actor.

“Oh no, that’s not for tonight,” suggests a voice off-screen. “That’s for the masked ball.”

Bridgerton Readers know that Benedict first meets his future wife, Sophie Beckett, at a masked ball hosted by his mother Violet (Ruth Gemmell). However, like that of so many of his siblings, their love story goes through many ups and downs before the couple finds themselves happily ever after together.

True to the Bridgerton However, it’s likely that Season 4 will also continue the love stories of several of Benedict’s siblings. Season 3 introduced John Stirling (Victor Alli) – and Francesca’s (Hannah Dodd) stunned reaction to his cousin Michaela (Masali Baduza). And of course, Eloise’s (Claudia Jessie) future husband, Sir Philip Crane (Chris Fulton), was introduced in Season 1.

Read on to find out everything we know about Season 4 and the love stories to come. (But, dear reader, be warned: Book spoilers follow!)

ACTION

Benedict’s book, An offer from a gentleman, is actually the third book in the Bridgerton However, the series skipped the story of the second son to focus on the romance between Colin Bridgerton (Lukas Neumann) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) in season 3 of the Netflix adaptation.

In An offer from a gentleman, Benedict meets a mysterious woman at the masked ball and falls in love with her. However, it takes him a while to find the object of his desire, Sophie Beckett. Although she is the daughter of a count and a remarkable beauty, Sophie’s resentful stepmother has done her best to hide her from society – and high society’s most eligible bachelors – in order to protect her own daughters.

In season 3 of BridgertonBenedict explored new possibilities in his love life, courting both Lady Tilley Arnold (Hannah New) and Paul Suarez (Lucas Aurelio). In fact, the only hint viewers had of Benedict’s canonical romance came at the very end of the season, when his sister Eloise promised to return from Scotland in time for their mother’s “masquerade ball.”

“His identity was a little question mark, but it never really seemed to bother him,” Thompson said Tudum about his character’s love life on screen. “It often feels like… ‘Either you’re this or you’re that.’ He’s figuring it out.”

It seems that the aforementioned masquerade ball might narrow his focus in Season 4?

Netflix’s logline for the new season hints at Benedict’s new love story, sharing that the upcoming eight-episode season will focus on “unconventional second son Benedict.” “Although his older and younger brothers are both happily married, Benedict isn’t ready to settle down.”

But with the older brother Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and his wife Kate (Simone Ashley) who head to India to welcome their first child, Benedict takes on the role of Viscount Bridgerton and may begin to take his duties more seriously.

“I’m excited to see where we go with him in Season 4,” said showrunner Jess Brownell Tudumand teased, “There are a lot of things I want to say about this, but I should probably wait.”

POUR

Many more members of the Bridgerton brood are expected to return for season 4, although no official casting announcements have been made yet. The most anticipated, of course, is the casting of the role of Sophie Beckett.

At the premiere of the third season ET asked both Coughlan and Newton whether they would return for Season 4 – which resulted in two tentative yes answers.

“I’m just excited to be back in the studio,” Newton said, adding that he’s in the dark about scripts and filming dates. “Absolutely not, no, not even a date or anything.”

“I’m not going anywhere, don’t worry, I’m staying here for a while,” Coughlan confirmed.

THE OTHER LOVE STORIES

Since Benedict is the main character in season 4, it’s likely that fans will get to see some of the other love stories planned for the family.

“There are so many different ships,” Brownell said in June 2024, before the new season was officially announced. “I think one of the ships is going to be very, very happy.”

Here’s more about what might come next:

Francesca and John (and Michaela)

Francesca’s love story is the one that got the most screen time in Season 3, but it may also be the one with the most question marks when it comes to the upcoming seasons. In Francesca’s book When he was evil — the sixth in the Bridgerton Series – the central love story actually only begins after the death of her husband John Stirling.

Francesca and John are undeniably lovers in the books, but much of their romance takes place in the background. When John meets a tragic end before the couple has even settled into their life together or produced an heir to the Stirling line, Francesca is left abandoned and reliant on John’s cousin Michael for company. Michael, however, has harbored feelings for his cousin’s wife for years, and both do their best to resist the attraction they feel for each other until it becomes too much.

But in season 3 Bridgerton Not only did the series swap Michael’s gender and introduce Michaela, but it also hinted that Francesca’s marriage to John may not be the perfect, quiet union she had hoped for.

“Bridgerton Book readers will know what it means when Francesca meets Michaela at the end of season three,” said showrunner Jess Brownell Tudum after the third season. “You’ll just have to wait and see what we do with it in the future.”

It seems possible that Francesca’s story will continue to play out in the background of her siblings’ love lives in Season 4, but the introduction of Michaela has also opened many doors for the series to delve into the most inscrutable member of the Bridgerton family.

Eloise and Philip

While some fans thought that Season 3 might hint at an impending romance between the outspoken black sheep of the Bridgerton family and high society’s most haughty gossip, Cressida Cowper (Jessica Madsen), their unusual union seemed to go nowhere.

In fact, Eloise ended her season by joining Francesca and John on their trip to Scotland, hoping to explore more of what the world has to offer after witnessing her best friend Penelope find love with her brother.

“That was the courage she needed to say, ‘I’m going to Scotland with my sister and I’ll be the fifth wheel forever,'” Jessie said. Tudum.

If Quinn’s story from the book applies to the series, Eloise will actually end up with the widower of her brother’s former fiancée, Marina Crane, née Thompson (Ruby Stokes), after Marina dies of pneumonia.

In Eloise’s book To Sir Phillip, with lovethe second-born Bridgerton daughter, enters into another unconventional relationship, this time via a series of letters she exchanges with the widower and father of two. She eventually sneaks off to meet him in person and, after a confrontation with her protective brothers, finds happiness in an unexpected place.

In the series, viewers haven’t seen Sir Philip since season 1 and there have been no hints about the relationship since then. But will Eloise’s romance come as a surprise? Bridgerton Fans as surprised as the independent woman herself?

PRODUCTION AND RELEASE DATES

In an interview with the LA TimesBrownell announced that season 4 of Bridgerton – which will consist of eight episodes – is scheduled to begin production in fall 2024.

“We always live in this eternal spring in Bridgertonbut we’re playing around with the idea of ​​fall… for the first time,” the showrunner noted. “Part of it is story-related, and part of it is, honestly, just practical because we’re shooting in the fall. It’s still going to be just as lush and colorful, but more in those warm fall colors rather than the pastels.”

According to Brownell’s previous comments, production of the new season will take two years, with the premiere likely in 2026.

Bridgerton Seasons 1-3 are now streaming on Netflix.

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