When Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton were preparing to film Season 3 of the regency-era romance series “Bridgerton,” they knew they were going from supporting characters to main characters. And it was scary.
Coughlan remembers feeling relaxed while watching the couples from the first two seasons perform because the biggest pressure wasn’t on her yet.
“As supporting actors you can go, ‘I’ll do my little bit but it doesn’t really matter because the main story is over there,’” she told Reuters.
However, that was no longer the case when she and Newton stepped forward as the leading couple for the third season of the Emmy-nominated show.
“For us to then go into being the main story, I think it overwhelms us still,” said the Irish actress.
“Bridgerton,” developed by Shonda Rhimes’ television production company Shondaland and Netflix, follows the romantic journeys of the Bridgerton family as they navigate London’s ruthless marriage market.
Set in the early 1800s, the story focuses on the scandals and successes of the social season as young marriageable nobility looks for love.
Season 3, which arrives on the streaming platform on Thursday, follows the highly anticipated friends-to-lovers romantic arc between characters Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton, played by Coughlan and Newton.
“The friends-to-lover’s trope, I think a lot of people resonate with that and have experienced that,” said Newton.
