Regé-Jean Page’s Duke, Simon is not returning to Bridgerton season 2, and while there are more stories to tell to justify the change, the excuse given for his disappearance doesn’t make sense. Rather than focusing once more on the romance between the Duke and his new wife Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor), Bridgerton season 2 will instead tell the story of Daphne’s brother Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and his own new blossoming romance.
The plan for Bridgerton was always for Shonda Rhimes’ creative team to follow the format of the original books and shift the narrative at the start of each new release to one of the Bridgerton children. For Netflix, Daphne came first, as in the books, and Anthony will be next, before the other six Bridgerton children get their own romantic stories. Each will play out against the backdrop of the Ton, and will feature the same cast of supporting characters, but it seems likely that in each case, the main characters will move on, rather than being demoted to supporting figures themselves.
Regé-Jean Page himself was sold the idea of playing the Duke on Bridgerton with the promise of only appearing for a single season. It appealed to him almost as a mini-series would, and given how his star has risen since the release of Bridgerton season 1 in 202o, it’s no surprise that he would want to be freed up for more opportunities (including those rumors that Page could be the new Bond). But the official excuse that the story moves on after one season because the whole story has been told is not true in the case of Simon and Daphne, because the most compelling part of their relationship happened only during the final moments of the Bridgerton season 1 ending. After grappling with his own suitability as a father and the desire to cut off his bloodline in vengeance, Simon disappearing completely after having his own son cuts off an incredibly interesting story.
Shonda Rhimes offered her explanation of the shifting main character focus, speaking to AdWeek to suggest that the format would allow for telling a single complete story each season, with the impetus on feeding audience obsessions: “Our goal is that every season, you have a couple that you’re obsessed with, and that you can’t believe that we’re not going to see more of their story next season, because we’re telling a complete love story every season. There are eight Bridgerton siblings, and as far as I’m concerned, there are eight Bridgerton seasons. And maybe more.” But to limit Simon and Daphne’s relationship to “the chase” is hugely reductive when issues of paternity were so key to their formative steps, not to mention any potential fallout from the controversial manner in which they came to have a child.
Simon and Daphne’s story deserves to continue, even in the background, and it’s difficult not to imagine that it can only be handled without a satisfying reason for Simon’s departure. It’s been said that the Bridgerton season 1 breakout character was absent from the Ton before the season kicked off and his departure would not be out of character, but the point of that version of Simon was that he had no real roots. There is more of a story here to tell and it’s a disservice to suggest the audience will be fully satiated without more of it being told in Bridgerton season 2.
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