Everything We Know About 'Bridgerton' Season 4

It appears Benedict Bridgerton has finally met his match.

In a new, highly anticipated trailer for season four of Bridgerton, Netflix confirmed that season four will focus on the love story of the second eldest Bridgerton brother, who seems poised to enter the marriage mart after encountering a mysterious Lady in Silver at a masquerade ball.

After resisting polite society in favor of a number of noncommittal rendezvous, Benedict will have his Regency romance after all. Despite fan theories that Benedict's storyline would be queer (following season three revelations in which he went to bed with both Lady Tillbey Arnold and Paul Suarez) it seems the writers are staying close to the source material for season four. Benedict's future relationship will likely be with an as-of-yet unknown character named Sophie—true to the plot of book three.

'Bridgerton' Season 4 Trailer

On July 23, Netflix released its first sneak peak of the new Bridgerton season, which gets slightly meta when Luke Thompson appears out of character to gamely accept an invitation to a mysterious masquerade ball.

That's really the only hint we get from the trailer, but savvy viewers already know what to expect: if season four is going to skip back to book three, that means a romance (presumably with a new character named Sophie) is on its way.

'Bridgerton' Season 4 Plot

Benedict has certainly had his fill of romance in a way that only men can in the Regency-era ton of Bridgerton. From falling into bed with Lady Tillbey Arnold and Paul Suarez last season to his intimate friendship with Henry in season one, the guy has been verifiably allergic to the idea of the marriage mart.

“Benedict has always been a little lost—or free depending on the way you want to look at it," Thompson said of his character on Tudum. "But now he’s trying to find something a bit more solid in himself.”

Now that we've seen the trailer, it's clear that Benedict's search for love and stability will be the focus of season four. Netflix confirmed as much when they dropped a hint about a mysterious Lady in Silver on X, formerly known as Twitter: "Despite his elder and younger brothers both being happily married, Benedict is loath to settle down—until he meets a captivating Lady in Silver at his mother's masquerade ball."

The announcement tracks with fan predictions that the show would jump back to book three of Bridgerton after skipping ahead to book four last season. In book three, Benedict meets a woman named Sophie, the illegitimate daughter of an earl. Sophie's stepmother's name is Araminta, and at the end of season three, Bridgerton's wig artist Grace Gorman revealed that Lady Cowper's first name also happens to be Araminta. Coincidence? Dearest reader, we think not.

But that doesn't mean other characters won't get their time in the spotlight. Season three set up the possibility that Eloise could be more open to love this season, and hinted at a queer story line to come for Francesca Bridgerton, who was quite taken with her new husband's sister in the season three finale.

'Bridgerton' Season 4 Release Date

Unfortunately, Bridgerton showrunner Jess Brownell told The Hollywood Reporter back in June that it would be another two years before fans could get their hands on season four: “We are working to try and put the seasons out more quickly, but they do take eight months to film and then they have to be edited, and then they have to be dubbed into every language,” she said. “And the writing takes a very long time as well, so we’re kind of on a two-year pace, we’re trying to speed up, but somewhere in that range.”

Who is Benedict Bridgerton?

For the uninitiated, Benedict is the younger brother of Viscount Anthony Bridgerton, who married Kate in Season 2. (Brush up on your Bridgerton trivia with this family tree.) Benedict is the free spirit of the family; while he has had plenty of romantic encounters throughout the show, he's never shown any interest in settling down. However, after a rendezvous with Lady Tillbey Arnold and Paul Suarez at the end of season three, Benedict appears to reconsider his lifestyle choices. This sets him up perfectly for his encounter with the Lady in Silver in season four.

“I think Benedict is someone who experiences a lot of breadths in his life in terms of a million different experiences, but he’s never really committed to anything," showrunner Jess Brownell told The Hollywood Reporter. "I think what he’s starting to realize is that he also craves depth, and so Benedict reconciling breadth with depth is something we’re going to dive into pretty deeply in future seasons.”

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