Are the genders of Benedict and Eloise’s lovers swapped in “Bridgerton”?

BridgertonThe season three finale brought a surprising twist when Francesca’s future husband in the books, Michael Stirling, changed genders to Michaela Stirling. With Francesca now set to have a central queer love story in a future season, could Eloise and Benedict have a similar experience?

The big twist occurred in the final episode of season three, “Into The Light,” when John Stirling introduced Francesca to his cousin Michaela Stirling at the Dankworth-Finch ball. When Francesca sees Michaela, she is speechless and stumbles over her words. “I’m warning you. Every dirty detail John has said about me is a lie,” Michaela teases. “The truth is much worse.”

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Michaela’s potential romance with Francesca would be the first time a queer love story has been the focus since the series debuted in 2020. This significant change in the books is in line with previous comments from showrunner Jess Brownell, who told Proud in April that she wanted to introduce more LGBTQ+ storylines into Netflix’s royal drama.

Brownell, who recently took over the role of showrunner for Season 3, spoke openly about Eloise and Benedict’s sexuality and also revealed whether she plans to swap the genders of her partners.

Will there be a queer love story in Benedict’s season? Bridgerton?

Regarding Benedict’s sexuality, the show’s writers “talk about him as pansexual (and) the idea that for him, gender is not so important when he finds attraction,” Brownell revealed to TVLine.

Benedict had a three-way relationship with the widowed Lady Tilley Arnold and her boyfriend Paul Suarez this season. In book three, “An Offer from a Gentleman,” author Julia Quinn doesn’t mention that Benedict is gay. He ultimately falls in love with Sophie Beckett – the daughter of an earl who eventually becomes her mother’s maid – in a fairytale Cinderella romance.

In the television series, Brownell explains that Benedict is “someone who is interested in energy and spirit, and he’s not interested in conventions or labels. He sees a human being as a human being.” She continued, “And while his threesome chapter with Tilly and Paul seems to be over at the end of the season, we’re certainly not done exploring that part of his personality. As all queer people know, your queerness is always a part of you, no matter who you end up with.”

Sophie has not yet made it to the screen in the Netflix series. Brownell said The Wrap that Sophie’s introduction “is definitely still possible, but we will continue to explore its interaction.”

In the season three finale, Tilley proposes a monogamous relationship to Benedict, who refuses. “That’s not the end of this story,” Brownell teased. “As any fluid person knows, fluidity is a part of your identity, whether you’re dating a man, a woman, or a nonbinary person.”

Brownell mentioned that a key clue to Benedict’s future in Season 4 can be found in his conversation with Lady Tilly. “I think he’s someone who has never been able to commit. Not just to a person, but to a path or a passion or even a hobby,” she said TVLine“He’s a Renaissance man and that brings with it the ability to do many different things.”

There is a high probability that Benedict will be the focus of the fourth season of the hit Netflix series. “At the end of season three, Eloise tells Benedict that she’s coming home for Violet’s masquerade ball in a few months, so there will be a masquerade ball soon,” Brownell confirmed to The Wrap“I’ll just leave it there.”

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Will there be a queer love story in Eloise’s season? Bridgerton?

Eloise Bridgerton’s story unfolds in the fifth book of Julia Quinn’s series, “To Sir Phillip, With Love.” When Brownell was asked about Eloise’s sexuality, the showrunner replied that she “understands” why people perceive her as “queer.”

“We talked a lot in the room about Eloise, about how she seems queer to a lot of people, and I completely understand why,” Brownell said TVLine“But we felt that it was really important, in this show where everyone is obsessed with romance, to leave room for a character – especially a female character – for whom that is not the priority.”

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Brownell added that the intention “is not that Eloise simply needs to meet someone of the right gender, but that she is actually more interested in intellectual pursuits at the moment.”

She continued that Eloise is currently “on the path to finding her place in a society that doesn’t leave much room for women who value ideas more than love.”

All episodes of Bridgerton Season 3 is streaming on Netflix. Watch the trailer for Season 3, Part 2 below.