Bridgerton season 5: Release date speculation and latest news

*Warning: This article contains full spoilers for Bridgerton season 4.*

With Benedict and Sophie’s romance concluded, Bridgerton viewers are eager to know when season four will arrive and which couple will take center stage.

Before season four even aired, the show’s creator, Jess Brownell, announced that seasons five and six will center around Francesca (Hannah Dodd) and Eloise (Claudia Jessie). It’s still unknown which of these characters will get their own season first.

In the latter part of season 4, Francesca’s husband, John (played by Victor Alli), tragically passed away. Now, viewers are anticipating a potential romance between Francesca and John’s cousin, Michaela (Masali Baduza), a character who has been reimagined as female for the show, differing from the original books.

Even though Lady Danbury’s story seemed to wrap up, Adjoa Andoh will be back for season 5, according to showrunner Jess Brownell. Brownell also shared a little information about when we can expect the new season to premiere. Here’s everything we know so far about Bridgerton season 5.

Bridgerton season 5 release date speculation

There’s no official release date for Bridgerton season 5 yet. Based on how long previous seasons took to produce, it might arrive in 2028. However, showrunner Jess Brownell has told TopMob she’s hoping to release it much sooner than that.

Okay, so about that whole thing with fans being upset about potentially long waits between seasons? I was asked about it, and I’ll be honest, I intentionally downplayed the possibility of two-year gaps. I figured it was better to say we’d aim for shorter breaks, hoping we could actually deliver on that and surprise everyone with faster turnarounds. Basically, I was trying to set expectations low so we could hopefully exceed them!

I’m really pleased with how quickly we were able to get Season 4 out – it was only about a year and a half after Season 3. We’re working hard to keep that pace going with Season 5, and hopefully we’ll be able to release it around the same time, or even sooner! We’re always pushing to deliver new content as fast as possible.

New episodes of Bridgerton season 5 might arrive in 2027, but it’s more likely we’ll see them in 2028, depending on production schedules.

Who will be the Bridgerton season 5 lead?

We don’t know for sure yet who will be the central focus of Bridgerton’s fifth season, but it will likely follow either Francesca Bridgerton (played by Hannah Dodd) or Eloise Bridgerton (played by Claudia Jessie).

Brownell has previously shared that one of the Bridgerton sisters will be the focus of the fourth season, which will begin filming in Paris. She told Deadline that the two characters whose initials are on her pocket squares will each get their own season – seasons five and six – but she isn’t revealing which sister will be featured first.

The Netflix series seems likely to follow Eloise’s romance next, followed by Francesca’s, if it continues to adapt the books in order. However, since the show already changed the order of Colin and Benedict’s stories, it’s unclear what they’ll do, and we’ll have to wait to find out.

Though many viewers are used to seeing her character focused on others, actress Claudia Jessie is thrilled to explore Eloise’s own love life. In an interview with TopMob during the release of the first part of season four, Jessie explained that Eloise is actively searching for her own approach to romance. Jessie has always been eager to portray Eloise’s unique path to love, however that may unfold.

“I think she’s just trying to find out her way of doing it.”

She explained that she’s eager to eventually take on the role and put her own spin on it. She’s incredibly enthusiastic about the show, her coworkers, and especially Eloise, and is excited for the opportunity when it comes.

Who could potentially star in Bridgerton season 5?

A new season of Bridgerton wouldn’t be complete without the Bridgerton family taking center stage, though it’s still unclear whose story will be the main focus. While Lady Danbury unexpectedly left during Season 4, the show’s creator, Jess Brownell, has assured fans that she isn’t leaving the series permanently.

In a recent conversation with TopMob, she confirmed that Lady Danbury will definitely return for season 5 and have a significant part. The creators decided to change things up by having Alice take on more responsibilities assisting the Queen, while allowing Lady Danbury to develop a close, friendly relationship with her – positioning them as equals.

Given their long history – which we explored in the spin-off – I wanted to give these characters some really emotional moments this season, including powerful conversations between them. But ultimately, I wanted the scene to end with them simply laughing and remembering they’re just friends, just girls being girls!

Their strong love and acceptance, combined with a lot of laughter, really brought them together and erased any differences between them. It felt like the perfect way to conclude their story.

We can expect to see Alice (Emma Naomi) take on a bigger role as the Queen’s lady-in-waiting. As for characters who might not return in season 5, Lady Araminta (Katie Leung) and her daughter Rosamund (Michelle Mao) likely won’t be featured. However, the show may develop Posy (Isabella Wei)’s growing connection with Eloise (Claudia Jessie), which was hinted at in the season 4 finale.

Lord John’s death in the latter half of season 4 means Victor Alli won’t be returning. Michaela leaving Francesca to grieve raises questions about whether she’ll come back if Francesca is chosen as the next main character. If Eloise takes the lead, Michaela’s return might be delayed. We’re also unsure about Lord Marcus’s future; despite a promising romance with Lady Violet, their relationship ended seemingly due to differing views, leaving his return uncertain.

Like previous seasons, we can expect to see familiar faces return. Benedict and Sophie will continue navigating their new marriage, and we’ll check in on Colin and Penelope, who were last seen dealing with a surprising twist in the Whistledown mystery – someone else was writing the gossip column!

The cast we’d expect to see return for Bridgerton season 5 are as follows.

Hannah Dodd as Francesca Bridgerton
Claudia Jessie as Eloise Bridgerton
Luke Thompson as Benedict Bridgerton
Yerin Ha as Sophie Baek
Nicola Coughlan as Penelope Featherington
Luke Newton as Colin Bridgerton
Jonathan Bailey as Anthony, Viscount Bridgerton
Simone Ashley as Kate Bridgerton
Martins Imhangbe as Will Mondrich
Ruth Gemmell as Violet, Dowager Viscountess Bridgerton
Will Tilston as Gregory Bridgerton
Florence Hunt as Hyacinth Bridgerton
Golda Rosheuvel as Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
Adjoa Andoh as Agatha, Lady Danbury
Polly Walker as Portia, Dowager Baroness Featherington
Emma Naomi as Alice Mondrich
Hugh Sachs as Brimsley
Masali Baduza as Michaela Stirling
Isabella Wei as Posy Li
Julie Andrews as Lady Whistledown
Lorraine Ashbourne as Mrs Varley

What could Bridgerton season 5 be about?

Although Bridgerton season 4 had several storylines, the next season will primarily center around a new romance. Be careful reading on, as the following contains spoilers from the books!

If Francesca is the main character, we can anticipate Michaela’s return. Michaela’s character was reimagined for this adaptation from the novel When He Was Wicked. The story centers around Michael’s secret love for Francesca, even after she marries his cousin.

The show has already established a connection between Michaela and Fran through their shared grief over John’s death. In an interview with TopMob, showrunner Brownell explained that while there’s an initial spark between the two, Fran doesn’t fully understand it. Because Fran isn’t very self-reflective, the relationship will develop as a purely platonic friendship.

The relationship between Francesca and Michaela will likely develop gradually. As for Eloise, viewers may recall meeting her future husband, Sir Philip Crane, back in season one. He later married Marina, though it was a marriage of convenience rather than true love, and they enjoyed a comfortable life together.

Eloise’s novel, To Sir Philip, With Love, begins with her writing letters to Philip, who is grieving the loss of Marina. As they correspond, Eloise unexpectedly falls in love with Philip, even though they haven’t met in person. Eventually, they do meet, and while Eloise is surprised by Philip’s rough-around-the-edges appearance – a contrast to the typical London gentleman – they quickly form a connection.

We’re really looking forward to the next Bridgerton stories! They promise to delve even deeper into feelings and relationships, and we can’t wait to see what happens.

Is there a trailer for Bridgerton season 5?

There isn’t a trailer for Bridgerton season 5 yet, as production hasn’t started. But you can re-watch season 4 here!

All four seasons of Bridgerton are currently streaming on Netflix. If you’d like to read the books, you can purchase the Bridgerton series on Amazon.

Don’t miss Bridgerton! Add it to your watchlist on the TopMob: What to Watch app. Download the app now for daily TV recommendations and exclusive content.

Authors

Morgan CormackDrama Writer

Morgan Cormack writes about TV and streaming drama for TopMob. Before that, she was an Entertainment Writer at Stylist. She also has experience in content marketing and freelancing, and holds a degree in English Literature.

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2026-02-26 15:38