“Waiting for Season 2: Shonda Rhimes Shares the Future of Queen Charlotte!”
Nearly a year after six episodes of Season 1 of Queen Charlotte aired back-to-back, executive producer Shonda Rhimes—who wrote and serves as showrunner on the series—is talking about the potential for new episodes.
The Netflix drama follows the passionate romance of Charlotte and George and how their arranged union sparked a societal shift that led to the diverse world presented in Bridgerton. The season ends with the titular monarch and a barely sober modern-day King George celebrating the news that their son Edward has finally conceived an heir.
The show’s overwhelmingly positive reception underscores the need for potential new episodes, but will it be met? Rhimes admits she’s still trying to figure out the answer.
“I didn’t want to tell a story that didn’t need to be told,” she told Variety. “I didn’t want to do a second season of Queen Charlotte, and you’d think, ‘Oh, that’s not very good.’” Tom Verica, who directed all six episodes of Queen Charlotte, previously told TVLine that he approached the show like a limited series.
“I think there’s always so much room with these rich characters to open up that world,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s George and Charlotte because we’ve seen everything and how they’re set up and we know where that’s going.”
However, there’s a “whole area to explore” with Lady Danbury, whose popularity is also chronicled in the show.
“She’s such a strong character, both the way Adjoa [Andoh] played her in Bridgerton and what Arsema [Thomas] did in the Queen Charlotte world,” Verica added. “They’re both fantastic actors and that character really resonated with a lot of people and hit a chord that made them want to dig deeper into her journey. I think the fans and I would love to explore that character a little deeper and spend time in that world.”
