The breakout star of “Bridgerton,” British-Zimbabwean actor Rege-Jean Page, will not be returning for the Netflix series’ second season.
Netflix and Shondaland announced on Friday that his character of Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings, will not appear in the next run which will switch the focus to Lord Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and his quest to find a Viscountess.
The series is based on the novels by Julia Quinn and the character of the Duke mostly plays out in the first one (which served as the basis for the first season). Thus any future seasons would’ve seen the Duke reduced to a supporting role or glorified cameo.
Phoebe Dynevor’s Daphne Bridgerton will return though to “help her brother navigate the upcoming social season and what it has to offer – more intrigue and romance than my readers may be able to bear.”
Page reveals that the short-term commitment was a big part of the role’s appeal, telling Variety: “It’s a one-season arc. It’s going to have a beginning, middle, end – give us a year. [I thought] ‘That’s interesting,’ because then it felt like a limited series. I get to come in, I get to contribute my bit and then the Bridgerton family rolls on.”