Shonda Rhimes Reveals Next ‘Bridgerton’ Spinoff Idea
Ruth Gemmell didn’t expect to burn so bright during Bridgerton season four.
The actress—who plays matriarch Violet Bridgerton on the Netflix show—confessed she was surprised to learn that her character would have a sex scene with Lord Marcus Anderson (Daniel Francis), only finding out the storyline while getting dressed in a costume fitting.
“I was a little bit shocked,” Gemmell told Ciné-Télé-Revue in a recent interview. “I was in a costume fitting, and I realized that I was being fitted for something that I had no idea was going to happen.”
Although the 58-year-old said she “went home and cried,” the shock eventually wore off and she was satisfied with how the show handled the intimate scene.
“Thankfully, we tackled this one in a slightly different way to the kids of the show, because I don’t think anyone would want to watch that really,” she explained, quipping that they used “a lot of low lighting.”
Ultimately, Gemmell recognized the significance of showing Violet Bridgerton getting her groove back following the death of her husband Edmund years prior.
“We don’t die after a certain age,” she told the outlet. “So, it’s quite nice to kind of represent that.”
The Fever Pitch star continued, “It’s very lovely to see young love and love for the first time, but it’s also very important and lovely to see somebody who has loved and lost and grieved and comes with a myriad of baggage, because everyone can identify with that, and I think that’s important to show.”
Liam Daniel/Netflix © 2025
And viewers might be getting to see more of Violet’s love story unfold, as executive producer Shonda Rhimes recently revealed that she’s considering another show centered on the character.
“That’s an area that we’re excited about and know that that could be really rich and really mined well,” she told Craig Melvin of possible spinoffs on a recent episode of his Glass Half Full podcast. “I’ve always said that I thought if we were going to do something like that, Violet would be a great person to tell the story about—the Bridgerton mom. So, yeah, that’s a possibility.”
Liam Daniel/Netflix © 2025
As for the real love lives of the actors behind Bridgerton? Read on for all the tea.
Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/WireImage
Nicola Coughlan
While Nicola’s Penelope Featherington found love with Luke Newton‘s Colin Bridgerton on season three, Nicola herself has sparked romance rumors with Renegade Nell alum Jake Dunn.
Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/WireImage
Sam Phillips and Bessie Carter
Lord Debling and Prudence Dankworth (née Featherington) may not factor into each other’s love lives on the show, but the actors have made a real-life match.
And it appears that Carter’s mum Imelda Staunton approves.
Shane Anthony Sinclair/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA
Phoebe Dynevor
Daphne Bridgerton swapped vows with Regé-Jean Page‘s Simon Basset, and now the Bridgerton alum plans to take her own stroll down the aisle.
Dynevor flashed her engagement ring from producer Cameron Fuller at the 2024 Met Gala.
Kate Green/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA
Regé-Jean Page
The erstwhile Duke of Hastings, Page having left the show after season one, keeps his personal cards close to his vest off-camera, but has looked awfully happy in copywriter Emily Brown‘s company since 2021.
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Jonathan Bailey
Like Anthony, 9th Viscount Bridgerton, the English actor prefers to stay mum on romantic affairs.
But he told The Standard in December 2023 that he was in a not-secret-but-private relationship with a “lovely man.”
“Having a private life is, for me, completely critical,” the Fellow Travelers star said. “I don’t know if I would be able to be as confident to speak out on other things if I felt that my whole life was up for grabs.”
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Simone Ashley
The Sex Education star, who fit the Vicountess bill for Anthony upon arrival from India, confirmed she was in a relationship with Tino Klein with a March 2023 Instagram post. But in February 2025, the actress shared she had entered her “single era” in an interview on BBC’s Woman Hour podcast, revealing the split occured one month prior.
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Luke Thompson
Benedict Bridgerton seemingly just wants to be free to do his thing, as an artist and in the bedroom. Though maybe he’s developing some feelings…
And Thompson, who’s not one to share what he’s up in real life, was totally onboard with his character’s journey, wherever it took him.
“It’s lovely to explore,” he told Deadline ahead of the season three finale, “but also putting down some roots and choosing something or someone also has huge value and excitement.”
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Luke Newton
Newton dated actress Jade Louise Davies—her sister Amber Davies won Love Island U.K. in 2017 with then-boyfriend Kem Cetinay—for several years.
But he was snapped following Bridgerton‘s June 2024 midseason premiere in London hand-in-hand with dancer Antonia Roumelioti.
Of course, most fans are just disappointed that Colin Bridgerton and Penelope aren’t together in real life.
“We think it’s really sweet,” Coughlan told Extra of the off-camera shipping that goes on for them. “I think because we truly love each other.”
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Charithra Chandran
The actress who plays Kate’s sparkling sister Edwina Sharma may be single at the moment, but she sent hearts soaring with the release of her 2024 rom-com How to Date Billy Walsh, costarring her longtime friend Sebastian Croft.
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Claudia Jessie
It turns out the actress destined to play Eloise Bridgerton ended up falling for the non-actor she auditioned with, casting editor Cole Edwards.
“I got a job and a fella on the same day,” Jessie told The Guardian in April 2024. “It was a great day for me, wasn’t it?”
She also not shied away from sharing candid confessions about her sex life, despite the fact that her character Eloise has yet to have sex on the series.
“It’s funny though,’” Claudia joked with AP during a joint interview with Hannah Dodd and Luke Newton in 2026, “cause in real life I’m having more sex than both of them.”
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