'Bridgerton' Showrunner Chris Van Dusen Is Stepping Down For Season 3

Showrunner Chris Van Dusen has been at the helm of “Bridgerton” for the past two seasons.

However, the Netflix period drama is about to get a new showrunner for the third season. Dusen let the news slip to Entertainment Weekly while was reflecting on the show’s second season, which saw Viscount Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) finally tie the knot with Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley).

The show’s third season – if they decide to follow the books – will focus on the love story of Benedict Bridgerton. Dusen seemed to confirm that they will focus on Benedict in the third season to give fans more insight into the larger “Bridgerton” world.

“With Benedict, I've always been interested in exploring what happens outside the confines of Mayfair and seeing the world beyond Grovesnor Square. Benedict's key to that idea,” he explained. “He's been able to take us out of these drawing rooms and into this more bohemian world that's full of art and all these colorful characters.”

“At the end of the day, he's someone who's trying to figure out where he fits into this family as a second son. He's been afforded some special freedoms and privileges because he is a second son,” he continued. “He doesn't have the pressure of carrying on the family mantle like Anthony does. I've always loved seeing what Benedict chooses to do with that freedom.”

“We've seen what he chooses to do in the first two seasons. I hope he carries it on after this season,” he added. “I can't wait for the sole focus to turn onto Benedict Bridgerton, and we can really dig into his story.”

Many fans were unhappy with the shift in the season, which seemed to put more emphasis on Anthony courting Kate’s younger sister Edwina, which carried on for six out of the show’s eight episodes.

When asked about the shift, Van Dusen said, “I don't think I'd be doing my job correctly if I was scared to put our characters into the most unimaginable, most difficult situations possible and then seeing how they get out of them.”

“That's something I challenged my writers to do in our room,” he added. “It's something I challenged myself to do in my writing. That's what makes really good, riveting compelling television.”

Although some fans are more interested in the love story, Chris Van Dusen seemed more interested in exploring Penelope Featherington’s secret identity as Lady Whistledown.

“This season is so fascinating for Penelope Featherington. We get to see that there's this entirely other side of the Lady Whistledown Operation,” he explained. “Eloise Bridgerton is at these balls with her, which makes Penelope's life that much more difficult. And then finally the other shoe drops for Eloise — she puts the pieces together and she figures out Penelope is Lady Whistledown.”

“That fight between the two characters, it's brutal and it's devastating, as I wanted it to be,” he continued. “That confrontation was a long time coming after seeing Eloise hot on Lady Whistledown's trail in season 1, almost getting her but not quite, and in this season, finally figuring it out.”

“It's one of my favorite scenes, that fight — because it is a ride in of itself. Nicola and Claudia give performances that are just out of this world,” he added. “At the end of the season, Penelope's been stripped of everything. She's lost her best friend. She's lost her crush in Colin Bridgerton, after overhearing him and his buddies. She's lost her alter ego. It was fascinating for me to figure out what Penelope was going to do next. And that's answered in the final moments of the finale.”

In the final moments of the finale, fans actually hear Penelope’s voice instead of the voice of Lady Whistledown (Julie Andrews).

“It was something that, like all ideas, they just get into my head and they just spill out,” he explained of that decision. “At that moment when you hear the voiceover, it is what Lady Whistledown is writing, but Penelope herself hasn't quite made the choice yet.”

“If you look really closely at that scene, she hasn't quite made the choice to pick up the quill yet,” he continued. “The voiceover of Lady Whistledown is literally the voice in Penelope's head. You just usually hear it as Julie Andrews. But for this time, I thought it was a really interesting device to switch it up for just a second.”

Season 2 of “Bridgerton” is available to stream on Netflix.