Luke Thompson, Bridgerton

Polin season has ended, and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) is a wallflower no more. By the end of Bridgerton Season 3, she is not only the wife of Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) but also the proud bearer of the pseudonym Lady Whistledown. That's right: Penelope has at last revealed her identity as the gossip columnist to the ton — and she did it on her own terms. And while she had great fears about her biggest secret being exposed, the season wrapped with Penelope being embraced for her alternate identity as Lady Whistledown.

Bridgerton was renewed for a fourth season back in 2021. The news was hardly surprising considering the popularity of the Netflix series based on Julia Quinn's historical romance novels. And now that Season 3 has ended, it's time to turn our focus toward perpetual bachelor Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson), whose search for a match will be the main story of Season 4.

The Netflix drama has shifted the order of Quinn's series a bit. Benedict is the central character in Book 3, titled An Offer from a Gentleman, but Bridgerton chose to adapt the fourth book, Romancing Mister Bridgerton, for Season 3, to tell the story of Polin first. It's only right that Benedict will finally get his moment in the spotlight.

Here's everything we know so far about Bridgerton Season 4, including when it's coming out (hint: not for a while), who it will focus on, the new romantic lead, and the returning cast.

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Yerin Ha, Luke Thompson

Netflix announced on Sept. 16 that production on Bridgerton Season 4 has begun. The streamer released a first-look photo of our new leads, Yerin Ha (set to play Sophie Baek) and Luke Thompson (Benedict Bridgerton), together. Netflix also shared a list of the actors joining Season 4's cast; you can find more information in the cast section below.

We finally know which Bridgerton sibling will be the focus of Season 4: Benedict Bridgerton, who in Season 3 told Lady Tilley Arnold (Hannah New) that he's not looking to settle down, is stepping up to find his perfect match. 

Netflix's official synopsis of Season 4 reads, "The fourth season of Bridgerton turns its focus to bohemian second son Benedict. 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."

In September, Neflix shared more information about this Lady in Silver: "Sophie Baek has been forced to spend much of her life working as a maid for the most demanding employer in the ton. But the resourceful Sophie always finds a way to persevere through her circumstances — which will drastically change after she disguises herself to attend Violet Bridgerton's masquerade ball."

The streamer also released a short video teasing Yerin Ha's addition to the cast.

Your Sophie has finally arrived. Please welcome Yerin Ha to Bridgerton Season 4! pic.twitter.com/sHZMZIPhTD

Yerin Ha

On Aug. 16, Deadline reported that Yerin Ha, who recently starred in the live-action adaptation of Halo, is set to play Sophie. Known as Sophie Beckett in Quinn's novel, the character will instead have a Korean surname, Baek, in the Bridgerton TV series. Netflix said this change was made out of respect for the actor's culture. "A name is the first bit of identity that you share with the world, and that's why changing a name can be so powerful," Ha told Tudum. "To make Sophie's name fit someone who looks like me is really empowering. All credit to Jess Brownell, our showrunner." According to Ha, Brownell asked her about Korean last names beginning with a "B" and they landed on Baek.

Deadline also reported that Jonathan Bailey is confirmed to return as Anthony Bridgerton in the upcoming chapter. As of mid-September, Simone Ashley, who plays Kate Sharma, has not been confirmed to return.

Netflix also announced on Sept. 16 that Katie Leung, Michelle Mao, and Isabella Wei are joining Season 4's cast. Leung has been cast to play Lady Araminta Gun. Here's Netflix's description of the character: "Twice married and twice widowed, Araminta has two girls debuting on the marriage mart this season and is feeling the pressure to get at least one of them married off. Fabulous, discerning, and blunt, Araminta does not respond well when anything — or anyone — threatens her standing in society."

Mao is set to portray the Lady's eldest daughter, Rosamund Li, who is described as "beautiful, vain, and eager to please her mother." Netflix says, "Rosamund sets her sights on Benedict Bridgerton this season and is determined to get what she wants." Meanwhile, Wei has been cast as Posy Li, Rosamund's younger sister, who is also debuting this year. According to Netflix, "Her mother rarely puts the spotlight on Posy, as her chatty, overly friendly demeanor often has her putting her foot in her mouth."

Here are other actors returning for Bridgerton Season 4:

Netflix announced Benedict's ascension to main character with a short teaser that shows an out-of-character Thompson accepting his outfit for the masquerade ball — an event that fans of the book series are very familiar with.

Unfortunately, Bridgerton is eying a return in 2026 at the earliest. In June 2024, Brownell told The Hollywood Reporter about the timeline for Season 4. "We're kind of on a two-year pace, we're trying to speed up, but somewhere in that range," she said. "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." At least production has started, as of Sept. 16!

More on Netflix:

Bridgerton Seasons 1 to 3 are available to stream on Netflix.