NEED TO KNOW
Benedict Bridgerton is entering his leading man era.
On Monday, Oct. 13, Netflix announced that season 4 of Bridgerton, which sees Benedict (Luke Thompson) at the center of the story, will premiere in two parts, beginning on January 29, followed by a second drop on February 26.
Along with the announcement, the streamer released another new teaser for the upcoming season, giving fans a glimpse at the romance to come between Benedict and the mysterious Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha).
In season 4, Benedict and Sophie meet at a masquerade ball thrown by Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell), which Sophie “disguises herself to attend,” per the logline. Benedict meets her as a “captivating Lady in Silver” at the event, and, as is shown in the teaser, their chemistry is off the charts.
“With each passing season, one is known to experience plenty of ups and downs. So then we must ask ourselves, do we rise to the occasion?” narrator Julie Andrews, the voice of Lady Whistledown, says in the teaser. “As always, time, and this author, will tell.”
Liam Daniel/Netflix
Production began on season 4 in September 2024, and Thompson, 37, told Netflix’s Tudum at the time that this season explores “the struggle between a proper old-school fairy tale — the romance of it — and the actual reality of the world.”
“I get really excited by how many unexpected twists you’ll get in Season 4,” he said.
Ha, 27, told PEOPLE earlier this year that she and Thompson “work so well together” as she dished on their chemistry.
“I think we’ve just bonded. There’s just such an openness with Luke, and I think — I like to think I’m quite open with him,” she said at Netflix’s “Season of Love” event in February. “We just try to focus on the story and truly accepting each other for who we are — both character-wise and as people — and I think that has helped with the chemistry.”
Liam Daniel/Netflix
Both she and Thompson also revealed that they elected not to ask their predecessors for advice ahead of filming.
“I was tempted to ask,” Thompson said, referring to previous male leads Regé-Jean Page, Jonathan Bailey and Luke Newton. “I was tempted and then I thought, no, I’m just gonna find out myself — how I want, how I feel, how it feels to me.”
“I think there could be an amazing book written about how everyone’s done it because it’s so personal. And it says so much about that person,” he continued. “That’s the beauty of the show. A different flavor [each season].”
Ha similarly said she “wanted to just feel this journey for myself and kind of figure out the wars on my own.”
She confirmed, though, that she had talked to fellow leading ladies, Phoebe Dynevor, Simone Ashley and Nicola Coughlan.
“Basically, [they’ve said], if you want advice, please reach out. But don’t get too scared. The fans are amazing,” she said. “That’s been the biggest thing that they said is like, don’t let them scare you, know they’re so lovely and supportive.”
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Bridgerton season 4 premieres on January 29 with part 1, followed by part 2 on February 26.
