Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton on their ‘transformation’, playing the new Bridgerton couple: ‘A rewarding and beautiful process’

To reflect the changes their characters have gone through, from being friends who looked out for each other to adults who set each other’s heart aflutter, it becomes imperative to show their makeover. Speaking about it in a press statement, showrunner Jess Brownell says: “A makeover is a huge trope in the rom-com genre. Penelope does have her makeover but it doesn’t necessarily have the impact that she thought it would. For her, the change is much more about her confidence than it is about her external impression.” As the season progresses, Penelope learns to accept who she is, apart from taking accountability for some of the things she’s written as Lady Whistledown. Colin, being the third Bridgerton brother, tries to come out of his elder siblings’ shadow to find his place in this world.

When Season 3 opens, Colin has returned from his summer travels with a new look and swagger. By then Penelope seems to have moved on and is giving him the cold shoulder. To mend their friendship, Colin offers to mentor Penelope in the art of flirtation and to help her find a husband. Talking to The Indian Express about their transformation, Newton says: “We wanted to portray the version of these two characters as grown up. That required working with all departments (costumes, hair and make-up) for changes in their looks to bring them to centrestage. It was a fun journey to go through.” Some have described Colin’s new look as a “sexy pirate”, others as a ‘Marlboro Man’ with his clothing getting darker and more moody this season.

Till now, the viewers have seen Penelope in citrus-hued gowns. As she takes charge of her marital prospects, she ends up in greens and blues, which coincidentally also are more similar to Bridgerton family colours. This also drops hints of where she’s headed. When it comes to the hair and makeup, Penelope has always had these “tight little pin curl poodle looks”. She shuns that for a looser hairdo, which was not the style then, indicating that she was always ahead of time. Talking about this process, Coughlan says: “That transformation took months of work as Penelope steps into her adulthood and find her sexuality. Doing it as her character evolves was interesting for me as an actor.”

The star couple of Season 2 played by Jonathan Bailey (Anthony) and Simone Ashley (Kate), known as ‘Kanthony’, brought their much-loved crackling chemistry to the narrative, making it apparent with every stolen glance they took or when their hands touched. The newest pair in the ton has been anointed as ‘Polin’. Do the lead actors feel the pressure of living up to the buzz Kanthony created? “Absolutely. That’s the thing about the show. It has a totally new couple every season. The thing with romance is that they go through these different tropes. We hope we receive as much love as they did,” says Coughlan, who also features in Derry Girls (2018-2022) and Barbie (2023).

The character of Penelope goes through quite a journey from being introduced as a wide-eyed teenager who stumbles as she enters the grand hall to meet the queen to a purpose-driven woman. “I was obviously much older than when I was playing Penelope’s age in Season 1. But people often make the mistake of patronising the younger characters. When you are 17, you haven’t lived as much life but you are the same person. She was always intelligent. When we were in the midst of filming Season 3, I saw a clip of Season 2. That was so different. In S3, I wanted her to be physically more comfortable and deepen her voice,” Coughlan says.

Nicola Coughlan as Penelope Featherington, Luke Newton as Colin Bridgerton in Bridgerton. (Photo: Liam Daniel/Netflix © 2023)

As co-actors, Newton and Coughlan share “deep trust in one another”. That, they believe, has turned playing lovers on screen, featuring several steamy scenes, one of their best experiences. “It’s amazing because Nicola sits next to me in the makeup chair and we get to talk about the growth of our characters, and the journeys that we go on. I love the way they’ve morphed together a little bit; Penelope has brought out the more flamboyant side of Colin,” says Newton, who has acted in The Cut (2009) and the Disney Channel series The Lodge (2016–2017).

While the dynamics of Colin and Penelope’s relationship changes this season, off-screen Coughlan and Newton have been friends for long. “We are both very good at communicating. Standing for each other’s needs. Shooting for this season has been a long process, including 10 months of practice. We were lucky to have built this foundation of friendship five years before,” Newton says. Coughlan echoes that they are aware of one another. “That made it a rewarding and beautiful process. It’s my favourite season to film,” says Coughlan.

Penelope might not be the ‘diamond of the season’ but the story of Polin’s friendship and love is set to shine.