Bridgerton has been one of Netflix’s most bingeable shows since its very first season in 2020. Fans who weren’t aware of Bridgerton prior to the television series (I was one of them) quickly discovered that the Regency era romance is a book-to-screen adaptation of Julia Quinn’s popular historical romance novels. Six years later, Season 4 has finally premiered in its entirety, with production for Season 5 in full swing. Throughout the years, Quinn has supported all production decisions, from color-conscious casting to major plot diversions. Turns out there are a couple of reasons why Bridgerton’s author was more than willing to completely give up creative control so Shonda Rhimes would adapt her books.
Season 3 marked a turning point for the Bridgerton TV adaptation, departing from the book series in a few ways. First and foremost, Season 3 focused on Colin and Penelope’s love match, rather than continuing in book order (Book 3, “An Offer From A Gentleman” tells Benedict’s tale). However, the more shocking change was the gender-swap of Michael Stirling to Michaela Stirling, which quietly set up a future LGBTQ+ storyline for Francesca. This diversion resulted in a lot of backlash directed towards Quinn, who backed showrunner Jess Brownell’s decision.
The New York Times Bestselling author recently told the Maher sisters on House of Maher that she has almost no involvement with the show, and revealed two reasons why it was easy to give up creative control of the series:
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The first one was, I did not wanna mess this deal up. I was aware this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, not just for me, but for my whole genre. Nobody had gotten a deal like this. There were Hallmark movies, and there was Outlander, and Outlander, there’s a lot of romance in it, but it’s not a romance.
It’s true, there’s no historical romance series adaptation quite like Bridgerton. Quinn’s original deal with Shondaland and Netflix was $100 million for four seasons, although she told People Rhimes had plans to adapt all eight Bridgerton books. The How To Get Away With Murder creator is one step closer to that goal now that Netflix has renewed the popular romance for two more seasons.
There truly is no one better than Shonda Rhimes when it comes to salacious scandal, extraordinary yearning, and the kind of breath-taking confessions of love we’ve come to expect from the Bridgerton leads. Need I remind you of Meredith Grey’s iconic ultimatum, “pick me, choose me, love me?” Only a warm-up to one of my favorite love confessionals in TV history:
It’s not an exaggeration when I say I think about that scene every day. At the time, Quinn didn’t know what Shondaland’s Bridgerton would become, but she knew from Rhimes’ track record that she could completely trust the Grey’s Anatomy creator with her beloved historical romance series:
I wanted this to happen, I wanted to be a delight to work with. But it’s also really easy to take that attitude when you’re working with Shondaland. They know what they’re doing, I’m not gonna be the person who’s gonna tell Shonda Rhimes how to make television… and also it’s just as a company, their values align with mine. I think they do such good work, and so I was just saying, ‘You know what? I’m gonna let you work your magic.’
That’s not to say Quinn is completely cut out from the television adaptation. Most big decisions, especially major plot changes, are run by the author first, not for approval, but more on a consulting basis. For example, when Bridgerton showrunner Jess Brownell ultimately decided to make Francesca’s romance a sapphic love story, Julia Quinn heard about it ages before it went public.
It seems there’s a lot of trust and respect that goes both ways between the author and those who run the show, and given Bridgerton is one of Netflix’s most-streamed shows of all time, I’d say the results speak for themselves. So while I understand that some fans are disappointed about the many changes made to things like Francesca’s story, I sit firmly with Julia Quinn on this one: there is no doubt in my mind that Shondaland will continue to give us great romance. I also think they’ll give us an epic queer romance between Francesca and Michaela, who have officially been announced as the main couple in Season 5.
I’m psyched that a sapphic couple will be the lead roles on a show like Bridgerton, known for swoonworthy moments, steamy scenes, and opulent sets. Given production has just started, we won’t see any lesbian yearning or spark-worthy tension from Hannah Dodd (Fran) and Masali Baduza (Michaela) on the 2026 TV schedule, but we can hope for a premiere date sometime in 2027 or 2028.
