An Official Behind-the-Scenes Bridgerton Book Is Here
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below."
They say it takes a village to raise a child...or a hit TV series. Such was the case when Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers brought Bridgerton, the beloved romance novels by Julia Quinn, to the screen in 2020. When the Shondaland show premiered on Netflix, it instantly became a phenomenon that transported viewers into a Regency-era world dominated by complicated romances, family drama, lavish societal balls, and of course, gossip.
From the thoughtfully designed costumes and jewelry to the gorgeous sets across the U.K., bringing Bridgerton to the small screen required an impressive collaboration of artists. "Betsy and I kept having these conversations about how amazing the people who put together the show, all of the people working on the cast and crew, all the people behind the scenes [were]," says Rhimes. "We started thinking, "How do we highlight all of that amazing work and show people how a show like this is made, especially after the show was received so well?"
And so was born Inside Bridgerton. The perfect holiday gift for the Bridgerton fanatic, the behind-the-scenes book features never-before-seen photos from the sets and offers exclusive, firsthand accounts from the cast and crew about the creation of the hit series. Think: what went into designing the many balls, choreographing the dancing, and how those steamy scenes were brought to life. Here, Rhimes and Beers share more about Inside Bridgerton and the upcoming season with T&C.
Tell us why you wanted to take on this project of Inside Bridgerton.
BB: Everybody sees credits, but not everyone knows what those people do. You'll look at a name and think, "Okay, I don't know exactly what job that is," and it was an incredible opportunity for us to really say, "All of those people that you see on [and off] screen, they all have these incredible jobs, and they all contribute so much to the product." Bridgerton would not be the show that people love and hopefully want to watch again without the participation and the genius of all these people who are working behind the scenes.
What was your favorite part of the process of creating this book?
SR: I think for us, the going down memory lane part was really great, and we got to have these great conversations where we talked about everything. But also, for me, the best part was really hearing from these other people, these other creators, about their craft and what they were thinking. I learned things that I didn't know, which was super.
BB: So did I. And you get this feeling like, "Well, I must know because I worked on this show," and the greatest thing about this book is, I think, I probably learned as much about some details and certainly worlds then as the reader will. It was discovering it all over again, which was really, really fun.
Obviously, both of you know a lot of what went into making the show, but was there anything surprising that you actually didn't know that you found out in the book?
SR: I was really surprised to hear Sabrina Bartlett [who plays Siena Rosso in the first season] talking about the fact that she had five months of training that went into performing her opera scene, in all the different languages. I didn't realize. Obviously, actors prepare—we prepared everybody—but that was really one that I had never even thought about somebody needing to do.
BB: I'm obsessed with [how senior creative production advisor] Tom Verica tells this story about how he asked the grip department to make an apparatus for Golda [Rosheuvel], who obviously plays the amazing Queen Charlotte, to use between takes to take the weight of the heavy wigs off her head. Because I don't think I realized how heavy the wigs were. I would see her walking around with these wigs and think, "Well, those look phenomenal. Those are fabulous." But in fact, they're incredibly heavy. And, the fact that they came up with an entire device to support her was just an act of genius and ingenuity that I found delightful.
You've been work partners for years. Of all the projects you worked on together, how was creating Bridgerton different from the rest?
SR: Doing a period piece is certainly very intensive, but we approach everything with the same intensity to detail. It doesn't matter whether we're doing a medical show, or a Washington show, or a period show, we just dive right into whatever that world is and try to create it as hard as we can. I think it was a lot of fun and it felt really magical to step back into this world.
BB: I think every show has its own challenges, and initially, one of the things which I certainly wasn't used to was, we've filmed many, many of our shows in Los Angeles, and this is one where we were so lucky to be able to film in England and be able to avail ourselves of all the resources, and all the talent, and all the beauty. And so I would say one of the delights, especially of Bridgerton 2 was this incredible opportunity to film in a place that has so many resources and so much talent.
Bridgerton 3 is well underway. What can viewers expect in the upcoming season?
SR: It's going to be as exciting, and as inviting and enjoyable as seasons 1 and 2, we already know that. I'm already enjoying watching things, so it's going to be great.
Some fans weren't very happy when news came out that season 3 would be following Colin and Penelope's storyline instead of Benedict's. What was the reason behind your decision to make their romance the main arc of this season?
SR: Everybody's going to have a main arc every season. There's going to be one for each one of the Bridgertons. We laid out the story in a way that felt right and necessary for us. And, eventually, every last one of those Bridgertons is going to have a love story.
We know that Simone Ashley and Jonathan Bailey will be back for season 3 as Kate and Anthony. A lot of the comments on your Instagram pages are fans begging for a "Kanthony" spinoff. Would you ever be open to that idea?
SR: I don't know what story would be told. The beauty of this show is that we get to tell a complete love story from beginning to end with a happy ending every season. We don't have to manufacture reasons why a couple can't be together, we let them have their actual happy moment. And so, there are no spinoffs to be had because we'd have to find some reason to break a couple up, and that feels very artificial.
BB: Or just watch a couple just be happy.
SR: Maybe we could just watch them just sit together.
There's also a Bridgerton prequel about Queen Charlotte in the works, and we here at T&C are very excited about it. Will it have the same vibes as Bridgerton?
SR: It revolves in the same world, but I think it's an entirely different kind of show.
BB: It's its own show, but it's in the world.
Inside Bridgerton ($45) is out on bookshelves and available to order online now.
You Might Also Like
