The Bridgerton spin-off rewinds time to tell the epic and societal-shifting love story of Queen Charlotte in the series latest trailer.
Bridgerton quickly rose through the ranks of Netflix’s original series to become one of their keystone franchises. Audiences couldn’t get enough of the inclusive Regency-era romantic drama closely following the eponymous family and their navigation of love, rivals, and friendships in London’s high society. Although season 3 is still underway, supporters of the celebrated franchise can rest as easily as the next Bridgerton tale is almost upon us. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is the prequel expansion to the franchise, and Netflix released the official trailer for the upcoming series on Tuesday.
The trailer’s caption on YouTube frames the series as “a love story that changed the world.” Unlike her role in Bridgerton, Queen Charlotte takes center stage in the upcoming prequel. Her rise to prominence and power is the series’ main focus, telling the grand romantic tale of the young Queen’s marriage to King George. Their transcendent union was more than just an epic love story. It also ignited a societal shift that eventually created the Ton, the high societal world where Bridgerton takes place.
Amidst the classic Bridgerton-verse costuming and set design, viewers are introduced to the younger versions of Queen Charlotte, King George, Lady Agatha Danbury, and Violet Bridgerton through scenes from the upcoming series. The trailer quickly establishes conflict as the marriage between George and Charlotte must not go awry for the sake of the kingdom. Deemed “the first of her kind,” Charlotte must secure her position and fully step into the responsibility of her role as the next Queen of the United Kingdom.
The cast portraying the younger characters for Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story includes India Amarteifio as Queen Charlotte, Michelle Fairley as Princess Augusta, Corey Mylchreest as King George, and Arsema Thomas as Agatha Danbury. Bridgerton alum Golda Rosheuvel, Adjoa Andoh, and Ruth Gemmell are set to reprise their roles as Queen Charlotte, Lady Danbury, and Violet Bridgerton, respectively. Additional cast members include Sam Clemmett, Freddie Dennis, Richard Cunningham, Tunji Kasim, Rob Maloney, Cyril Nri, and Hugh Sachs, reprising his role of Brimsley.
The spinoff comes from Bridgerton creator Shonda Rhimes, who serves as showrunner, executive producer, and writer on Queen Charlotte. Additional executive producers include Betsy Beers and Tom Verica, who serves a dual role as the series director.
Queen Charlotte Will Incorporate a Modern-Day Timeline into Series
The Bridgerton mega-franchise will soon begin its expansion with the spring premiere of Queen Charlotte. On Tuesday, the Bridgerton universe creator Shonda Rhimes and the prequel’s cast members hosted a global event for fans to build upon the anticipation for the series premiere. During the panel, Rhimes revealed new details about the upcoming spinoff’s storyline in the discussion.
“We’re meeting them at their young starting points,” stated Rhimes, which echoes the trailer’s mention of Queen Charlotte’s story being “the story that started it all.” Although the story backpedals to show audiences younger versions of the established Bridgerton characters, Rhimes revealed that the story will also incorporate a modern-day timeline. The trailer confirms this new detail within the clip when the young Queen first meets her betrothed before transitioning to the seasoned Queen viewers fell in love with in the flagship series.
When explaining how the stories connect to the expanding Bridgerton-verse, Rhimes mentions that audiences will see “how the stories from the past reflect or educate you on the stories from the future. For all of the characters, you get to see the growth and who they’ve become, when juxtaposed against the young versions of themselves.”
Audiences can check out Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story when the six-episode limited series premieres on Netflix on May 4.
