The following contains spoilers from all eight Netflix episodes Bridgerton – go out at your own risk.
If there are similarities between Nicola Coughlan and her Bridgerton character, Penelope Featherington, it’s that she knows how to keep a secret.
When she’s informed of all she can share about the lush, London drama of the Regency era, it’s guaranteed, but still not-official Season 2 Coughlan swears that she and her costers know very little. This includes whether the series will start rolling in March, albeit according to rumors.
“They keep everything super, mysterious, so I don’t really know yet,” the Irishman, Coughlan, said. Derry Girls and Whores, tells TVLine convincingly. ‘Believe me, the cast, we’ve been speculating a lot. I send a lot to Claudia Jessie (who plays her bestie Eloise on screen) a lot and send ‘What do you think happens?’ I speculated a lot about storylines and only tried to apply logic where I did not know if logic works. ”
Like us, Coughlan wonders about the fate of Penelope now that she’s revealed – again, SPOILER ALERT, gentlemen and ladies! – for viewers like Lady Whistledown, just as the family’s happiness has changed. (Although Lady Featherington, as it was then, as it was then, did not inherit her husband’s estate.)
‘She’s certainly rich because of Whistledown. But what is it going to mean? Wonder Coughlan. ‘I do not know who will take over the family estate and my father, was he really killed? Will Eloise find out who Whistledown is? I know nothing of those things. I’m honestly just as curious as you. Hopefully they will say yes [to Season 2]. ”
Presented by Netflix as one of the biggest launches of the service to date, Bridgerton it is expected to be sampled by 63 million households in the first four weeks, and this is the first project from Shonda Rhimes’ Shondaland agreement with the streamer. Chris Van Dusen created and displayed the sexy and race-inclusive sudser, based on author Julia Quinn’s popular book series of the same name.
As for Coughlan, who turns 34 this weekend and barely looks older than her character which is exactly half at her age, the actress is grateful that she and her family are healthy and happy during a pandemic, adding that she can not wait to get back to work … whenever and however it comes.
Twitter.com/nicolacoughlan
TVLINE | You are active and quite funny on Twitter. Have you tried to avoid social media?
I’m terrible. I will dive right in unlike some of the others. As for Phoebe [Dynevor], playing Daphne, I was like, “Have you watched?” And she’s like, ‘No, I’m staying away from my phone. And I go, “Yes, me too” – but no, I did not. I just look at absolutely everything. I swear by God, on Christmas Day [when Bridgerton was released] I looked on Twitter and thought no one was watching it, which is good. And then the day after Christmas, it became clear that many people are watching. When the numbers came out, I started looking and I could not understand it. Sixty-three million is not even a number. I’m sure I could write it down. As, what? I tried to take it all with a pinch of salt. I think it all feels like it’s happening in the ether.
TVLINE | It is also nice to see your real hair. Was it a wig on the program?
Yes, it took some time. Especially in January and February, when we did a lot of the studio stuff – like the Featherington House and the Bridgerton House. I am picked up at 4am in the morning, driven about an hour to set, and then the process begins. If I pinned my hair, then the wig cap and then the lace and the styling … and the embellishments, the corset and the makeup. It was a serious process. I would say it took 2 hours 15 [minutes]. I had a beautiful hair and makeup artist, Lou Bannell, and it’s the nicest thing you can have. If it’s someone you can talk to, time can go faster. And there were puppies in the makeup trailer. Not for our enjoyment, they were just by the crew. But sometimes, if you were very lucky, you could get a puppy on your knee to play with.
TVLINE | Was the audition process tough?
I thought it was going to be because my agent said it’s a Shondaland / Netflix show and it sounds like a big deal before you hear anything else about it. I thought, ‘Oh no. This audition process is going to be terrible. It’s going to be months and months and it’s going to be meetings with managers and this and that. I had two days to prepare for the first audition with two or three short scenes. I read with the casting assistant and after that the tapes went to America. And I thought, ‘OK, goodbye. I will never hear from you again. ‘Then I called two weeks later and was offered the role, and I was so shocked. I said to my agent, ‘Are they sure? They did not meet me. And what if I’m not the right person? ‘Then you come to the table and it’s Chris Van Dusen and [Shondaland’s] Betsy Beers and all these people from Netflix, and you’re scared to open your mouth. What if I open my mouth and they say, ‘Oh no, actually. Sorry “? You hear such horror stories. So I was scared.
TVLINE | Did you have to study chemistry with one of your peers? You had good chemistry with Claudia Jessie, who plays Eloise.
No, I did not meet anyone but Claudia, but completely unrelated – we met briefly through friends, and she was very lovely. People always say that Shonda has an instinct for actors and who is going to be right, and in terms of me and Claudia, they just nailed it. She is the best person to work with. She’s just a pleasure and if you work with someone like that, it’s easy. Claudia can have chemistry with anyone, to be honest.
TVLINE | Do you feel the backlash from fans who were angry with Penelope for revealing Marina’s pregnancy, as Whistledown?
Not too much, and I think you need to develop a thick skin about it and let people see their opinions. This is also OK, because people have had these books for 20 years in their lives, so you will realize that they have such a clear idea about who the character is, and I was aware of that. I also wanted to be sensitive to that and go, ‘I am the Penelope they chose. I hope I can do her justice for you. On the set, I tried to leave everything behind, all the weight of expectation, and just do the work, you know? With social media, you can torture yourself very easily.
TVLINE | Have you read the books to get an idea of what will happen next?
Definitely. I started with Book Four [Romancing Mister Bridgerton], which is Penelope’s book. However, it is ten years later The duke and I, Season 1. So I would talk in costume accessories about Felicity Featherington and they were like, ‘Who are you talking about? That character does not exist. She is the fourth sister in the book, but not in the program. But I did not yet have access to all the scriptures, so I was talking about people who were not in our world, but in the world. book world. And then I went back to Book One and read it. Then I went to Book Two [The Viscount Who Loved Me] and realize I have to stop; I should not have had my head ten years before these events. If we are confirmed [for Season 2], the first thing I will do is go back and read book two again. One of the things that came to my mind was that the fans all have their favorite love story, and they connect with a certain couple. Many of them talk about Gregory Bridgerton and who it’s going to be [playing him], and is it going to be really hot for anyone? And he’s like 12. You can ‘t look at him like that. You can not answer all the questions.
TVLINE | What do you like about Penelope? She’s so different from Clare, the character you played Derry Girls.
What I really liked about her is that she is so complex. She is not someone you can describe in three words. She’s a lot of things, and she’s a lot of contradictory things. Penelope is this very sweet, friendly girl, but she can also be very annoying and do terrible things. She is a woman with a lot of ambition and who wants a career but she also wants love and marriage and babies and all that stuff. She’s really low status when she’s on the ball because no one pays attention to her. But then she is a high status character in that she is Lady Whistledown, the most powerful woman in London. All this as an actor is a complete surprise, because it’s a bit of everything. There is so much bubbling beneath the surface that you cannot see.
I would love to go with her on that journey to see what comes out and what changes to her. What I quite like is that the writers allowed her to be flawed, like all the characters. I know fans are really upset about what Penelope did to Marina. I was very shocked that she did it, and really did not think it would go there – but it went there.
TVLINE | Not that you have a say with the writers, but what do you want for Penelope?
I would like to see Penelope grow up a little bit and have a little more confidence in herself. I would like to see her be more honest, because the worst deception is for Eloise, her best friend. Eloise is completely upfront with Penelope the whole time, but Penelope doesn’t tell her that much, and it stresses me out to think about when it’s finally coming out. What will this mean for their friendship? If a screenplay has such dimensions and levels, it makes your job as an actor very easy, because it’s all there for you. I’ve never before played a character who keeps so much below the surface.
TVLINE | Have you watched Gossip girl and do you see the similarities?
The OC was my jam, it was my era. I think I was at university Gossip girl came out and thought maybe I was too old. And then we do the press for this program, and I’m still being asked about it, I think, ‘I really should have watched Gossip girl! ” [Laughs] I know things through osmosis because it was such a part of pop culture. I think there are definite similarities, but what is also really interesting is that the thirst for gossip has been there for hundreds and hundreds of years. People, we are curious and comparative by nature. We want to know what’s going on.
TVLINE | When Bridgerton premiered, have you had a chance to see any of it before, and who watched it with you?
I have watched it before and I am very grateful for it. I’m really self-critical – ‘I should not draw that face. Why did I do that? If I were to do it again, I would do it differently. Then I come to the “come on yourself” moment. And then I started watching the program and appreciating everything. When Christmas Day arrived, I was completely over and I could enjoy it. I was in big trouble with my Irish mother. She was not happy with me. She was like, ‘What is this? What’s going on? “And I told her it’s not my fault. [Laughs] But she loves it. She’s a real fan now and that’s all I need.