‘Bridgerton’ Season 3 Sets Two-Part Release Dates!!

Dearest Gentle Reader, it’s nearly “Polin” season! Netflix announced today that their hit regency romantic drama Bridgerton will be returning for its long-anticipated Season 3 this spring. As if that wasn’t enough to get fans buzzing, the streamer also revealed that the new season — which will follow Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington’s (Nicola Coughlan) slow-burn romance—will be released in two parts. Part 1 is expected to drop on May 16, while Part 2 will follow less than a month later on June 13. To celebrate the announcement, Netflix also released an announcement video hyping up how anticipated the new season is.

It’s been a long wait for fans of the alphabetically named family. Season 2 premiered in March 2022, which means that it will have been over two years since we last got to check in with the Bridgerton clan. Or with the siblings, in any case. Family matriarch Violet (Ruth Gemmell) last appeared in the limited prequel series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, alongside Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) and Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) herself. Her arc there, however, was relatively limited, as the bulk of the series focused on young Charlotte’s (India Amarteifio) beautiful, bittersweet, heart-wrenching marriage to King George (Corey Mylchreest).

The two-part release date for Bridgerton Season 3 is in line with other recent Netflix releases—The Witcher and Stranger Things have both adopted this model. Still, for fans of the series, and more specifically of the books by Julia Quinn, the news doesn’t come without space for some healthy speculation. While we know that the new season is set to focus on Colin and Penelope, could the two-part release indicate a short time jump, like in their book Romancing Mr. Bridgerton? After all, Colin’s offhand remarks about Penelope as a prospective partner aren’t something that can be so quickly forgotten. The two-part release could also potentially leave room for some of the other Bridgerton siblings to get their romances underway, specifically Benedict (Luke Thompson) and Eloise (Claudia Jesse), both of whom have had romantic subplots in seasons past.

Who Is in ‘Bridgerton’ Season 3?

While the season will primarily follow Netwon and Coughlan, many of the series’ ensemble cast are expected to return for the newest outing. Season 2 stars Jonathan Bailey and Simone Ashley—whose chemistry was far and away the best part of the second season—will be returning as Anthony and Kate Bridgerton, alongside Thompson, Jesse, Rosheuvel, Gemmell, and Andoh, all of whom will also reprise their roles. Notably not returning, however, is Phoebe Dynevor, who led the first season as Daphne Bridgerton alongside Regé-Jean Page as Simon Bassett.

Season 3 will also see some new faces making their Bridgerton debut. Hannah Dodd is set to join the cast as Francesca Bridgerton, taking over the role from Ruby Stokes. Also joining the cast are Daniel Francis, James Phoon and Sam Phillips as new potential suitors for Penelope, and Hannah New as a wealthy, young widow. Jess Brownell, a frequent collaborator of series creator Shonda Rimes, is taking over showrunner duties for Season 3 from Chris van Dusen, who will still serve as executive producer alongside Rimes, Betsy Beers, and Tom Verica.