Bridgerton Has Given Us A Perfect Bisexual Coming Out Scene

For a show that celebrates, glorifies, and agonises over romantic love, we’ve seen very little queer romance depicted in Bridgerton. But in one of the newly dropped episodes of season four, we’re treated to a gorgeous example of a uniquely bisexual coming out scene.

Very mild spoilers for Bridgerton season 4.

The recent season of Bridgerton follows the romantic prospects of Benedict Bridgerton, the “spare” of the Bridgerton clan, and as a result, a rather restless, feckless, artistic dilettante. We’ve seen him drawn into the demi-monde on the edges of society, dabbling in drinks and loose women, and being “intimate” with young men. However, as the season and his feature romance with love interest Sophie Baek progressed, it seemed like that brief window into bisexuality was perhaps left behind by the show.

But in episode 6, during a scene where Benedict and Sophie pause their feverish attraction to connect on a slower, deeper level, sharing some intimate secrets about themselves, Benedict comes out to Sophie.

“I am capable of caring for you, just as I was capable of caring for some women of the Ton… and just as I was capable of caring for some men whom I have known intimately,” he says carefully.  “And I refuse to be, at all, ashamed about that.”

There is a moment of comprehension on Sophie’s face, who then answers: “Love is always a thing to be proud of. The world needs more of it”.

Cute!

The process of coming out as queer to someone of the opposite sex is a uniquely bisexual experience, and one not seen a lot in pop culture – bisexuality is usually defined by its “difference” from heterosexual relationships, and therefore is usually manifested on screen by same-sex pairings. The act of having to notate your queerness and “come out” as bisexual is incredibly relatable to bisexual people, refreshing to see, and the immediate acceptance and love shown by Sophie is something of a balm. It’s not always like that.

However, it is interesting that in a show that has famously disregarded historical accuracy, such as casting a wealth of people of colour into the lead roles of a fictionalised British aristocracy, and glossed over all the tragedy that allows elite society to flourish during this era (the Bridgertons would most likely have earned money through some kind of slavery system, for example), has still created a world where queerness is still taboo in some way.

They decided to completely ignore racism in their gilded fantasy world – why not homophobia too? But it’s clear that in other ways, the show is straining the bounds of its narrative with this thinking, having to introduce some superficial commentary about class for the star-crossed romance between Benedict and Sophie, who is a maid.

It will be interesting to see how Bridgerton negotiates queer romance, because according to Jess Brownell, the executive story editor and showrunner of Bridgerton seasons three and four, we can look forward to the LGBTQIA+ community having some time in the regency romance spotlight. In an interview (with me) during the promotion of season 3, she confirms that Bridgerton is a show about joy.

“On a show that is about the many ways which we love, it is only right to include queer love. I not only want to include queer characters, I want to tell queer stories – and to include queer joy”.

 

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