Note: This story contains spoilers from “Bridgerton” Season 4, Part 2.
While “Bridgerton” Season 4 saw Ruth Gemmell’s Violet Bridgerton take her flirtation with Lord Marcus Anderson (Daniel Francis) to the next level with a steamy Part 1 scene, the finale saw their romance come to an abrupt close.
Fresh off the loss of Francesca’s husband, John, the Season 4 finale sees Violet reject the prospect of marriage from Marcus and opt to not to formalize their fling amid the turmoil facing her family — a proposal that Marcus similarly rejects, ending their relationship in what Gemmell calls a shock to Violet.
“I think probably she’s a bit shocked that he’s not up for that … because he was up for that without the prospect of marriage before … she thinks he would go along with that,” Gemmell told TheWrap. “She’s quite shocked, and I think it will be quite tough on her.”
As for whether the end of their relationship could just be a pause, Gemmell admitted she doesn’t know. “Who knows what they’re going to do? But I think she’ll certainly come across him, and he’ll have a date and she’ll be really jealous.”
After Violet’s realization that Benedict (Luke Thompson) reminded her of the carefree, wild side she embraced in her youth, Gemmell noted that her intention was to “be a little bit more open in general, or even just with Marcus,” but that pursuit will hit the “back burner” as Violet helps Francesca in her time of grief.
“I should imagine very much it’s family-first right now, which is probably another reason why she didn’t want to step into marriage, because you can’t really embrace all that’s lovely and full of life when somebody is in the throes of grief,” Gemmell said. “I think her attentions are elsewhere, but I also think that her idea was to be a bit freer, rather than in another marriage.”
With Gemmell noting it would be quite “cruel” for Violet to openly pursue another casual relationship amid Francesca’s grief, the solution would be for Lady Bridgerton to “be a lot more subtler than she thought she was … if she’s gonna do anything like that.”
Nevertheless, her relationship with Marcus “awakened” something in Violet, according to Gemmell, especially as Violet gears up to be an empty nester in a number of years. “There needs to be a recognition that she’s going to be a bit lonely and without purpose in a way,” Gemmell said.
Below, Gemmell tells all about the response to that sex scene, guiding Francesca through grief and paving the way for Benedict and Sophie (Yerin Ha). This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
TheWrap: There’s been lots of love for Violet’s romance and steamy moment this season. What’s it been like to see that response?
Gemmell: I sort of do it secondhand, because I don’t do any social media, so I don’t see any of that, but people told me, and they’ve shown me, and they kind of like the tea line and all that kind of stuff. I find it hilarious. I’m pleased everyone’s on board with it and it’s really important for me to show that after a certain age, we don’t die. It’s all the same as everybody else, just we’re just a bit older. It’s quite nice to represent that, and probably a large demographic of our audience.
How do you imagine Violet will approach Francesca following John’s death, especially with Francesca being was much younger than Violet was when she lost her husband?
She thinks she can help immediately, and I think Francesca shows her that they are not the same. Although grief is universal for us all … grief is individual, and I think that comes as something that’s quite blunt to Violet. She’s going to have to learn to sit back and to just show up — she’s going to have to wait for Francesca to come to her, because it is so personal and it is very different. There’s something cathartic in recognizing grief, but it is also extremely personal, and I think that’s something she has to learn.
Violet becomes quite involved in Benedict and Sophie’s situation. When do you think she realizes there’s something more happening?
Until the moment she realizes he loves her, he’s playing with fire, because she’s very fond of Sophie and and he even though Violet knows there’s an attraction between the two, then he could ruin her, and she’s not prepared for that. She’s not going to allow her son to do it, and she’s not going to allow Sophie to be ruined. And then when she realizes that he is in love, it’s a complete game changer for her. You’ve got to put your money where your mouth and she has been, as he rightly points out it’s hypocritical. She’s shocked by that and then she has to kind of have a few home truths herself and let him go.
Benedict has such a special place in Violet’s heart that she lets some of his indiscretions slide by, including admonishing her for her relationship with Marcus. How do you see their relationship and why does she feel so much more connected to him?
There’s the scene where she talks about [how] she was very like him when she was a young woman. What’s lovely is that we’ve been working together since 2019 — I love those kids, and working with them in the family scenes is always a joy, because we’re always laughing and being irritating to the crew, because we just mess around quite often, but what it has done is bonded us in a really lovely way. I guess what has happened organically is there is a shorthand between us all. I guess maybe that’s what came through in the scripts and and that’s quite lovely. We’re all sort of products of products of our parents, but quite often more like one than the other, and quite often, siblings — I’m one of five, and I would say we’re not very similar, or even look very similar, but we all look like our parents, one of our parents — so there’s always that kind of thing, and it’s quite nice to portray that.
Violet very much so knows Sophie is illegitimate but still finds a way for them to be together. Does she waver at the thought of her illegitimacy or is it barely a thought to her once she realizes they’re in love?
By the stage that she knows they’re in love, she knows that she is the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman, so I think there’s something in that she’s maybe hanging on to, but the fact that … there is already a social ban that is being broken … is why she has to let him go. There’s that conversation of, “you can do this, and we can visit each other, but it won’t be frequently, because society won’t take it on board.” As soon as she realizes he loves her, she has to allow him to go — if that means that they don’t see each other very often, that is what it means. But the one thing that you can say without a doubt in every single series, and most definitely the books, is that Violet wants her children to be happy and to be in a loving relationship — that, above family, is the most important thing. She wants her children to be happy.
What does Violet see in them that makes them a good match?
She gives him a run for his money. I think she sees that she’s sort of — God, I hate to say, tamed him, but she has piqued his interest, where usually he is uninterested, and she has made him take responsibility, and she thinks that’s a good thing for him.
Violet has Hyacinth who’s so ready to get out and Eloise is still dragging her feet. What does Violet make of this situation?
She’s exasperated by Eloise, I think more for the fact that she can’t get her to see that she could have more freedom if she did what Violet is suggesting. But then that’s a parental role in life, isn’t it? Youth is wasted on the young, because we’ve all been there and done that. And actually, if you just listen to our advice, you could cut all the corners, but actually … we all turn down our parents’ advice, and then we get to their age, and then we kind of turn into them.
What are your hopes for Violet next season?
Pursue her own things and also make sure that her daughter is okay. And as far as the rest, they’re still going to cause havoc for me. What I would like is all my children to be in the same room, and their wives and the grandchildren — see how quickly that room would fill up.
A lot of fans would love that too!
“Bridgerton” Seasons 1-4 are now streaming on Netflix.
The post ‘Bridgerton’ Star Ruth Gemmell Breaks Down Season 4 Finale Breakup: ‘She’s Quite Shocked’ appeared first on TheWrap.
