Is Netflix's 'Bridgerton' Departing From the Books With a New Queer Character? (SPOILERS)

‘Bridgerton’ crosses limitations of time, space, race, and now sexuality, after introducing Michaela Stirling to Francesca.

Jun. thirteen 2024, Published 2:33 p.m. ET

Spoiler alert: This article incorporates spoilers for Bridgerton Season 3.

The days of queer coding are over; now art is just queer and we love it! What higher option to celebrate Pride Month than by introducing a doubtlessly queer dating within the final episode of Bridgerton Season 3? Netflix’s Bridgerton has damaged limitations as far as viewership and creators, proving how revisionist history through trendy approach is each entertaining and in style.

Between its soundtrack of classical covers of recent songs to its colorblind casting, Bridgerton is one of the most most-watched shows on Netflix. And now that Season 3 has introduced us and Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) to a brand new character named Michaela Stirling (Masali Baduza), enthusiasts are wondering if Francesca is actually gay. So what is her sexuality?

Is Francesca Bridgerton gay?

It’s so easy to get stuck up in labeling the whole lot and everyone. It is sensible that after Francesca has a flustered response to meeting Michaela, audience may just bounce to conclusions that she’s gay, but after all, sexuality is fluid and steadily undefined, especially after we’re figuring it out. In reality, Francesca’s love for John Stirling is the central theme all over so much of Season 3 and it could be a slap within the face to fans to fake she by no means loved him.

Francesca and John’s wedding is the principle match of the Season 3 finale, in which Francesca in spite of everything convinces her family to give a boost to her decision to marry John and move to Scotland. But on the marriage ceremony, Francesca meets John’s cousin Michaela Stirling. Michaela in an instant jokes, “I caution you. Every sordid element John has spoken about me is a lie. The fact is some distance worse.”

Whenever any individual who is figuring themselves out meets a assured and charming woman, it’s most effective herbal to get flustered. Francesca is so stuck off guard that she forgets to introduce herself by means of her new married identify. In the final moments of Season 3, showrunners are obviously hinting at a possible romance between Francesca and Michaela, despite Francesca’s contemporary marriage to John.

Here's what the e book and the showrunners reveal about Francesca's future adventure...

*Book spoilers and possible future season spoilers forward*

The e-book and the showrunners ascertain that Francesca will go on a queer journey.

In the Bridgerton book series, Francesca marries John’s cousin after John passes away from an aneurysm only a few years after their wedding. But in the e book, John’s cousin is named Michael Stirling. Clearly, Michaela is a gender-swapped version of Michael, that means that Francesca’s arc with Michael from the ebook will now be a queer love tale with Michaela at the display.

Showrunner and govt manufacturer Jess Brownell showed to Glamour that she felt Francesca’s second love would be the best moment to introduce a queer storyline into Bridgerton. “So the primary time I read When He Was Wicked, which is Francesca’s book, I truly associated with it as a queer girl,” Jess mentioned.

She went on: “Her guide talks a lot about how different she feels, and I think Julia Quinn’s purpose in the ebook is simply that Fran feels other because she’s introverted. But for many of us in the queer community, that sense of feeling different is a part of our tales. I felt like there used to be fertile flooring thematically in her guide to nod towards telling a queer story.”

Although Francesca seemingly has her satisfied ending by way of marrying John, there’s a lot more to the tale. “There also are some components of her tale that allow us to make sure we will be able to tell a sexy glad finishing for Francesca and Michaela,” Jess confirmed. “It used to be necessary for me in telling a primary queer story for us to be able to give them a fortunately ever after, as now we have with each other couple.”

But she additionally clarified that she doesn’t suppose “the expose of Francesca’s future queerness negates what she has with John … Every courting is different, and a number of different kinds of love are valid … Going ahead, I’m hopeful to inform an excessively nuanced story about Francesca having two great loves in her existence.” We are excited to peer how Francesca and Michaela’s story pans out, even supposing we have to wait two whole years for Season 4!

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