Dearest Readers,
This author finds herself compelled to share the most curious of news. The diamond of the season, Regé-Jean Page, will not be returning for Bridgerton’s second season.
Bridgerton fans were shocked when the news broke that recent breakout star, Regé-Jean Page, would not be returning for the second installment of the Netflix period drama. The 31-year-old became the internet’s newest boyfriend after his appearance as The Duke of Hastings and we haven’t seen someone skyrocket to fame this fast since Noah Centineo in “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before“.
Although Page only recently became a household name, he is no stranger to acting. Page previously starred in another Shonda Rhimes production, For the People, from 2018 to 2019. Rhimes seemed to love Page just as much as we do as she decided to put him in her new series based on the Julia Quinn novels.
Since Bridgerton was released back in December of 2020, Page has already been slated for a number of upcoming projects. It takes celebrities years of mega-fame to get a Saturday Night Live hosting credit on their IMDb page, but not for Regé-Jean Page as he appeared as a host on the long-running comedy show earlier this year. Page’s talent and popularity in the public eye have also landed him roles in the film adaptation of Dungeons And Dragons (2023) and the upcoming film, The Gray Man, starring alongside Chris Evans and Ryan Gossling. There have also been rumors of the Bridgerton breakout star being considered for the role as the new James Bond with fan campaigns flooding the internet.
Although it seems like Page’s newfound stardom is the reason for his abrupt departure, Page claims that only doing one season was the plan all along. The British-born actor told Variety that he was drawn to the role because it was a “one season arc with a beginning, middle, and end.” As reported by Entertainment Tonight, Page was allegedly asked to return as a guest star in three to five episodes for the second season. The actor turned down the offer to make $50,000 per episode possibly due to scheduling conflicts with his many upcoming films.
Although Regé-Jean will be missed from our favorite Netflix series, the fans shouldn’t worry about a lack of crush-worthy characters. There are plenty of heartthrobs to go around in Regency London with the upcoming season centered around one of them. The next season will focus on the life and pursuit of a suitable marriage for Anthony Bridgerton, the Bridgerton’s eldest sibling (Jonathan Bailey). This highly anticipated season is currently being filmed and will hopefully grace our screens in 2022. Although this seems like a while away, it was also reported that Netflix ordered two additional seasons meaning we’ll have plenty of content on the Bridgerton family for years to come.
