Netflix’s Bridgerton made a major change from Julia Quinn‘s book series by having Penelope replaced as Lady Whistledown.
During part 2, which premiered on Thursday, February 26, Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) made the decision to stop writing Lady Whistledown’s scandal sheet. The retirement didn’t last long, though, because very quickly someone else emerged to take over for Penelope — without her knowing their identity.
“Penelope went through such a giant growth arc last season. She’s not the powerless girl who needs Whistledown to take back her voice anymore,” showrunner Jess Brownell told Tudum about the decision. “While she stands by everything she believes about gossip being information, gossip being power for the voiceless, she realizes that it’s time for her to stop being in that role.”
Brownell expressed excitement at deviating from the book series, which never had anyone else filling in for Penelope.
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“Penelope was Julia Quinn’s Whistledown, so we knew we couldn’t really play with that reveal for too long because people could just Google it,” she added. “But now, we get to play with audience expectations.”
Brownell hinted how the shakeup will affect future seasons, saying, “Starting with Genevieve, the modiste in season 1, to Penelope as Lady Whistledown, and now looking at Sophie as a maid, it’s really key for us to explore the lives of these women who do work, because it’s a time period in which women had so few options and so little agency.”
She concluded: “Showing that there were women who didn’t just settle for what was handed to them, but tried their very best to make more of their station, it broadens the female experience in the show.”
While season 1 unmasked Penelope as Lady Whistledown, Brownell chose not to reveal who is currently behind the scandal sheet. Some popular fan theories include Hyacinth (Florence Hunt) or Eloise (Claudia Jessie).
Bridgerton is no stranger to book changes since its premiere in 2020. Season 1 centered on Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page), who were the leads of the first book, The Duke and I.
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Season 2 took inspiration from The Viscount Who Loved Me, which followed Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) as he found love with Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley). Despite Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) being the subject of the third novel, An Offer From a Gentleman, his love story with newcomer Sophie (Yerin Ha) wasn’t explored until season 4.
The third season instead focused on Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Coughlan) as seen in Quinn’s book Romancing Mister Bridgerton.
From going out of order to gender-swapping pivotal characters, Brownell has found ways to surprise the audience from season to season.
“I am really not trying to shake things up too much. I really believe in the vision of the show,” Brownell told Refinery29 in April 2024. “I really want to serve the stories and the books the best way possible.”
Bridgerton is currently streaming on Netflix.
