Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton Discuss Colin and Penelope’s Chemistry in Season 3

Bridgerton Season 3 is largely focused on a coupling that viewers have been patiently waiting for: Colin and Penelope.

The two characters have been friends for as long as they can remember, while Penelope has been secretly pining over Colin for years. This season, everything changes.

During a virtual press conference with reporters last week, actors Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton discussed what makes the friends-to-lovers dynamic between Colin and Penelope so appealing to audiences, their chemistry, and how Penelope’s newfound confidence comes into play.

“We had a big privilege in getting to play these characters for two seasons already,” Coughlan said.

“A lot of the time as an actor, you’re imagining a lot of the backstory. Especially with television, we don’t have the luxury of time to rehearse, which is something you get in theater, but we have to just go in and hope for the best on the day,” she continued. “But we’ve had two years of developing these characters and having time to think about them, because it’s an eight-month filming stint each time, which is long.”

Coughlan added that she and Newton also enjoyed spending time discussing their characters with one another.

“Thankfully, together, we really love to talk about the characters. So we’re very invested in their journey, and who they are as people, and what they mean to one another,” Coughlan said. “I think it’s the richness of the history between them that makes people [so invested].”

“And also, I think, because they’re real underdogs,” she continued. “I think that’s something the audience really relates and connects to. You know, they’re not the coolest people in the ton. They’re sort of awkward, and when they find each other, it’s a beautiful thing.”

While Penelope is comfortable in her writing as Lady Whistledown, she’s always struggled with confidence in other parts of her life. This season that begins to change as well. 

“Her accepting honesty into her life is a very transformative thing, and I think it also makes her realize who she is and her worth,” Coughlan said. “It’s a really beautiful journey to get to go on as an actor.”

It’s also perhaps that confidence that helps Colin realize his true feelings for Penelope. 

“There’s always been this spark and connection between them, but Colin sort of sees her in a different light,” Newton said.

“I think that’s a massive factor of it this season, is that she’s been sort of put down and been put in this place from everything that surrounds her, from society, and from her family — particularly her family,” he continued. “They sort of put her into a box, like ‘That’s where you’re supposed to be.’

“But she’s got bigger dreams than that and aspirations. And that’s what’s really sort of attractive to Colin,” Newton said. “When he starts to see those qualities in her [and] her confidence comes out, he’s like, ‘Oh, no, you’re the person that I’ve always really connected with and always shared something special with.'”

Bridgerton Season 3 Part 1 is currently streaming on Netflix. Bridgerton Season 3 Part 2 premieres June 13th.

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