Queen Charlotte Season 2 (& More Bridgerton Spinoffs) Looks Inevitable Now
Queen Charlotte topped Netflix’s 2023 charts, indicating that it, and the Bridgerton franchise, are on the fast track for even more TV series.
In 2023, Netflix released an engagement report revealing which series had the most hours watched in the year, and Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was at the top of the list, hinting that the series, and the larger Bridgerton franchise will see even more spinoffs and sequels in its future. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is the first-ever spinoff series of the Bridgerton television franchise. It follows the origins of the romance between Bridgerton’s Queen Charlotte and her husband, George III. Meanwhile, Bridgerton is a period romance, with each season following one of the Bridgerton siblings’ Regency era love stories.
According to “What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report,” Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was the fifth most watched television series from January to June of 2023. In total, it accumulated 503,000,000 hours of watch time. On top of that, both Bridgerton seasons 1 and 2 were in the top 75 of this list. Bridgerton season 1 earned 136,600,000 hours while Bridgerton season 2 earned 133,400,000 hours. Overall, these high numbers are significant because they prove Bridgerton and Queen Charlotte’s popularity, and therefore, support the franchise expanding even further.
Queen Charlotte & Bridgerton’s Popularity Means More Shows Will Definitely Happen
Since Queen Charlotte and Bridgerton racked up strong numbers in the first half of 2023, it seems more than likely that the franchise will continue making more spinoffs. Notably, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story was Bridgerton’s first attempt at a spinoff series, which is risky. However, since the series broke the top five of most-watched series in the first half of 2023, it has been clearly a success. This means that if Bridgerton wanted to move forward with more spinoffs, there would be less fear about it flopping, because Queen Charlotte proved audiences have a desire for this type of content.
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is not the only member of the Bridgerton franchise that saw success though. Although Bridgerton did not achieve the same incredible numbers as Queen Charlotte, it still did very well considering that neither season premiered in 2023. In fact, Bridgerton season 1 came out three years ago. This time gap indicates that audiences Bridgerton has potential staying, meaning that audiences are still interested in it, even if it has been a couple of years since its release. This is even more of a reason for Bridgerton to create more series under its franchise.
Should Queen Charlotte Season 2 Happen?
Along with making more spinoff series, Bridgerton can just as easily put effort into sequels as well, namely Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story season 2. However, at this point in time, it is unclear whether that is going to happen. First and foremost, Bridgerton creator Shonda Rhimes has noted that she felt Queen Charlotte was “a singular story,” meaning that it would likely be contained in its six episodes. However, that does not mean that the showrunner will not change her mind if there is enough demand. And based on Queen Charlotte’s success, that demand could very well be present.
But the more pressing question is whether Queen Charlotte needs a second season. In many ways, Rhimes was correct in that Queen Charlotte tells an effective and full story in just one season. There really aren’t too many loose threads, and those that exist could easily be tied up in the main Bridgerton series. Then again, if there is a good enough story to be told, then Queen Charlotte season 2 could not hurt either. If Rhimes creates an interesting chapter of what happens next for Charlotte and George, then a second season could absolutely be worth it.
What Other Bridgerton Spinoffs Could Happen?
There are many directions that Bridgerton could go in the upcoming years. Apart from working on the main Bridgerton seasons, of which there will be eight, the franchise could also follow in Queen Charlotte’s footsteps and explore the pasts of other fan favorite characters. In fact, after Queen Charlotte, there is significant interest in exploring the romantic origins of Lady Danbury and Violet Bridgerton. When it comes to the Bridgerton matriarch, it is clear that there is a strong love story to be told, while Lady Danbury has the opportunity to tell a much wilder and unique love story.
In general, Bridgerton is bursting with interesting characters who could easily hold their own series. An aspect of the Bridgerton universe that has yet to be explored in depth is the population who are not wealthy and part of the social season. This could definitely be an aspect of the franchise that could be interesting to delve deeper into.
