Bridgerton showrunner reveals why season 4 part 2 isn't about Francesca and Michaela's romance
If you're looking for a blossoming romance, you'll have to wait a while longer.
*Warning: This article contains spoilers for Bridgerton season 4 part 2.*
With the surprise arrival of Michaela (Masali Baduza) at the end of Bridgerton season 4 part 1, many fans have been anticipating a second half of episodes filled with lingering stares, yearning and a blossoming connection between Michaela and Francesca (Hannah Dodd).
However, with the tragic loss of John (Victor Alli) in this latter half of the season, the focus of Michaela and Francesca's connection isn't one that's concerned with romance, but rather a more profound connection, according to Bridgerton showrunner Jess Brownell.
When asked how she went about depicting Francesca and Michaela's dynamic in season 4 part 2 – despite many fans expecting some romance – Brownell told Radio Times: “Yeah, something I love in When He Was Wicked, the book that Fran’s story is based on, is the friendship between – in the case of the book – Michael and Francesca."
She continued: "Obviously, there’s this little moment of frisson when Michaela and Fran first meet but I think for Fran, she doesn’t really have a frame of reference to know what that meant. She’s also not a character who’s very self-aware or who looks deeply internally.
"So, it really is for these two about developing a platonic friendship. That scene where Michaela, Fran and John are all sitting doing that jigsaw and all three of them are great friends, it’s one of my favourite scenes of their storyline. Just seeing that they could get to that really beautiful place of acceptance.”
As Brownell mentions, the season sees Francesca clearly harbouring some kinds of feelings around living with Michaela back in Scotland and upon Michaela's arrival, the pair finally nip their problems in the bud.
They hash things out and get to a genuine place of friendship, with John's death bringing the pair together even more.
As we know, Michaela has been gender-flipped from the novel's Michael character and we can expect the love story between Francesca and Michaela to blossom soon. As for when, we're none the wiser just yet.
Brownell had previously confirmed that the season 5 and 6 focus will be on Eloise (Claudia Jessie) and Francesca, but didn't reveal in what order just yet.
Read more:
- Bridgerton’s Yerin Ha explains how surprise end credits scene is touching nod to Sophie’s story
- Bridgerton star defends Lady Araminta – and explains why fans should empathise with her
Seeing as things left on quite a sad and lonely note for Francesca at the end of season 4, it could be possible that her story takes the spotlight in season 5 but similarly, we could also be seeing Eloise making some major strides in her own romantic story.
We'll just have to wait and see!
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Bridgerton season 1-4 are available to watch on Netflix now. You can buy the Bridgerton book series on Amazon.
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Authors
Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.
