‘Bridgerton’ season 3 parents guide: Is it appropriate for kids?

It is no secret that Netflix’s Bridgerton puts the steam in this steamy romance. At its heart, the Shonda Rhimes juggernaut series is all about the romance of two people finding each other.

Physically and emotionally, that is — while the Regency era is thought of as subdued and repressed on the surface, that is far from the case behind the scenes. Sex is a large part of the previous seasons, even before the central characters put a ring on it. The sexual tension between Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and Duke Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page) propelled the first season forward, while the brimming hatred between Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate (Simone Ashley) was essentially foreplay. For fans of Romancing Mister Bridgerton, the source material for the show’s third season, they shouldn’t be disappointed. But perhaps approach with caution if there are children in the house.

How steamy is Bridgerton season 3?

For all of her life, Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) has been overlooked. Dressed in abysmal yellow by her sadistic mother, Portia (Polly Walker) for her social season, Penelope’s prospects were not being helped. It is a real shame, considering she is arguably the smartest character in the series. So intelligent is she that she has cultivated the witty and secretive persona of gossip columnist, Lady Whistledown. Out of anyone, she deserves to find love and happiness in a difficult time to be a woman. 

Her choice out of everyone is childhood friend, Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton). She has not-so-secretly harbored a burning passion for the oblivious third son of the Bridgerton clan. That all changes in season 3 when he agrees to be a wingman of sorts. Nature takes its course, and he naturally finds that she is the object of his affection. And where there is love, there is the physical relationship that comes along with it. Season 3 is just as mature as its previous seasons, with a TV-MA rating. Coughlan also confided in Variety about the moments of nudity accompanied by this exciting season.

“I specifically asked for certain lines and moments to be included. There’s one scene where I’m very naked on camera, and that was my idea, my choice. It just felt like the biggest ‘f*** you’ to all the conversation surrounding my body; it was amazingly empowering. I felt beautiful in the moment, and I thought: ‘When I’m 80, I want to look back on this and remember how f***ing hot I looked!’”

Even in the year of our lord 2024, there are still people maligning actors for their different body types. Coughlan clearly has no interest in entertaining this, and the season will unfold accordingly. And while this is a beautiful expression in an inclusive series, perhaps children should wait until they are older to encounter such mature themes. For the rest of us, Part I of Bridgerton is currently streaming on Netflix, with Part 2 set to premiere on June 13.