Ranking ‘Bridgerton’ Characters By How Unnecessary They Are
I've never seen so many characters do so little.
Is it just me, or did this season of Bridgerton involve even more loafing around than usual?
In case you missed it, Season 2 of the sumptuous period romance just dropped, and social media is already brimming with takes. Have the writers no concern about historical accuracy? (No.) Why would characters from Bombay have British accents? (Colonisation?) And what blush has Simone Ashley got on? Seriously, please tell me where I can get that blush.
But amid all the pomp and forbidden romance, there’s actually a much bigger issue to consider, namely: who is this season’s most pointless character? From Colin’s post-travel haze to Daphne standing around looking smug, Season 2 is packed awash with side characters lumbered with nothing plot lines, just kind of hanging around.
Here is our rundown of the most unnecessary characters in the second season of Bridgerton, ranked from least to most irrelevant.
#8. Madame Delacroix (Kathryn Drysdale)
The ton’s ‘Modiste’ (tailor), also known as Madame Delacroix — seems to do little this season apart form fit gowns and offer audiences an example of a savvy business woman back in the days of yore. Pretending to be French, though? That is classic. She’s the only character that knows the true identity of Lady Whistledown, though, so I guess that’s something?
#7. Lady Whistledown’s Narration (Julie Andrews)
When Bridgerton first dropped in December 2020, Julie Andrews’ turn as the mysterious Lady Whistledown was a welcome novelty, but does her continuing narration in Season 2 not feel a bit strange? Now that Lady Whistledown has been revealed to be (spoiler alert) Penelope? Maybe the creators just wanted to keep Julie Andrews on staff. But switching her narration out with Nicola Coughlan’s for Season 2 could’ve been fun.
#6. Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson)
Benedict is the Jerry Seinfeld of Bridgerton — he’s one of its characters, but he always seems to be enjoying the show. This walking personification of the smirking emoji does little apart from laugh at Kate and Anthony’s heated bon mots, get very high on an unnamed concoction (opiates?), and apply to art school. To be fair though, he owns some incredible waistcoats.
#5. Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton)
In another case of ‘what is the point of this man?’, Colin Bridgerton’s main thing in Season 2 is that he’s just been travelling and is now back. He’s also got some very weird facial hair, which he thankfully gets rid of after a couple of episodes. There’s an episode where he visits old flame Marina Thompson, for some reason, but other than that he’s mainly just hanging around, remaining oblivious to Penelope’s love for him and just, simply, “feeding the ducks”.
#4. Hyacinth Bridgerton (Florence Emilia Hunt)
Far be it from me to drag a child, but this kid didn’t seem to do much other than say “she will make a great Diamond” and “she looked beautiful!” on Edwina’s wedding day. Props on her positive energy, but my god Hyacinth, contribute something!
#3. Will Mondrich (Martins Imhangbe)
Last season, boxer Will Monarch had an obvious place as the best friend of the show’s leading man Simon Bassett (Regé-Jean Page), but as Simon is conspicuously absent from the second season, we’re left with Will no mates.
There’s not much for him to do but declare he’s retired from boxing and bang on about the Gentlemen’s Club he’s opening, literally every time he’s on-screen. We get it, Will, you’re excited about your gross strip club! Stop going on about it.
#2. Gregory Bridgerton (Will Tilston)
I just feel like this boy is too small to contribute to proceedings in any way. Sorry to this child.
#1. Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor)
Daphne’s presence in Season 2 only really reminds us of the absence Bridgerton‘s beloved Duke of Hastings, played by Regé-Jean Page, and the gossip that surrounded his exit.
Shonda Rhimes confirmed the actor was invited back to make appearances in five episodes, but he reportedly declined. “He’s an enormous star now,” she said. “As I like to say, the idea that we would write Regé to stand around in the background doesn’t make any sense at all to me.”
The same can probably be said for Phoebe Dynevor’s Daphne. While she’s probably not as famous as Regé-Jean Page, it’s still weird to see last season’s leading lady just pop up occasionally to generally disapprove of things before disappearing again.
Congratulations Daphne, you’re Season 2 of Bridgerton’s most unnecessary character. Your bouquet will alive in the mail.
Reena Gupta is Junkee’s culture writer. Follow her on Twitter.