Crack open the snuff and fluff up your wigs: Netflix has found its young Queen Charlotte for the upcoming Bridgerton prequel series.
British actress India Amarteifio—known for her TV roles in Line of Duty, The Tunnel, Doctor Who, and Sex Education—has been chosen to play the young version of Golda Rosheuvel’s formidable ruler. (That’s right, the Sex Education to Bridgerton pipeline continues after Simone Ashley’s turn as Kate Sharma in Season 2.)
Rosheuvel will appear in the series alongside fellow Bridgerton stars Adjoa Andoh (Lady Agatha Danbury) and Ruth Gemmell (Lady Violet Bridgerton). Lady Danbury, the town’s best matchmaker, will also be featured in her younger years, played by Arsema Thomas.
The prequel series has yet to be titled, but it’s essentially Queen Charlotte’s origin story, with (hopefully) sex and romance galore. Wonder why the queen is so tired of all the scandal with Lady Whistledown, especially when it comes to criticism over her leadership? This spinoff will shine a light on the uptight royal’s crucial courting with King George. After sparking controversy as an unlikely couple, the pair create a societal shift responsible for the Ton we see in Bridgerton’s first two seasons.
Along with Amarteifio, the Bridgerton prequel will also star Sandman’s Corey Mylchreest as the young King George and Michelle Fairley (Gangs of London) as his mother, Princess Augusta, who uses all of her power to secure her son’s place as monarch.
Other cast members include Sam Clemmett as Young Brimsley, Richard Cunningham as Lord Bute, Tunji Kasim as Adolphus, Rob Maloney as the Royal Doctor, Cyril Nri as Lord Danbury, and Bridgerton’s Hugh Sachs as the older version of Brimsley.
The new spinoff will join Bridgerton and Inventing Anna as part of Shonda Rhimes’ overall deal with Netflix. Rhimes will executive produce the new series via Shondaland and will serve as showrunner. Betsy Beers will also executive produce with Tom Verica, who is on board to direct.
The news comes on the heels of Bridgerton Season 2, which debuted last week on Netflix. The series, which quickly became one of Netflix’s most watched original series (per the streamer’s own metrics, at least) when it was released in December 2020, has already been renewed for both a third and a fourth season. The world is always burning for more Bridgerton.
