When Bridgerton was first released in December 2020 there were two key things that dominated public discussionโRegรฉ-Jean Page (for obvious reasons), and the showโs multitude of, well, very steamy sex scenes.
Fast-forward 15 months and finally, the second season of the record-breaking show finally dropped on Netflix. Once again, fans flocked to see the snapshot into the lives and loves of Regency Mayfair. But this season proved to be a little different.
Yes, the sexual chemistry between the seasonโs protagonists (Kate Sharma and Viscount Anthony Bridgerton) was high as ever, but the sex scenes wereโฆ non-existentโฆ almost.
Over the eight-episode series, Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate (Simone Ashley) battle their undeniable chemistry with longing looks, suggestive hand-grazing and explosive fights. Eventually, it all builds up to a point where they simply canโt deny their feelings any more. Anthony ends his engagement with Kateโs younger sister, Edwina and eventually hooks up with Simone. Itโs cute, itโs predictable and itโs a less-horny version of season one.
But fans were quick to point out that there wasnโt much rhyme or reason to the season excluding sex scenes given the book it was based on, the second in Julia Quinโs bestselling series, was just as, if not more sex-clad than the first.
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On Twitter, one watcher wrote: โS2 lacks the horniness and sex scenes of the first seasonโฆ they took the SEXIEST book and HORNIEST couple of the whole franchise and made it sexless.โ
Another wrote: โThis season of Bridgerton has no hot male main characters & no steamy sex scene.. wth am I watching?โ
But others actually commended the show for portraying a love story without needing to use erotica as a form of hooking the viewer in (at the end of the day, a lot of people say they do watch the show for the plotline after allโฆ)
โI honestly donโt understand the complaint regarding Bridgerton season 2 having less sex. Like who cares? The romance is good. Thatโs what matters. I love the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie and there are no sex scenes in that,โ one reasoned.
Another added: โI am not mad AT ALL about the lack of sex scenes in season 2. To be honest I didnโt care much for them in the first season. There is something so much more impactful about the fiery hidden infatuation btw #anthonybridgerton and #KateSharma. This taboo longing.โ
Why were there less sex scenes in season 2?
Essentially, the answer comes down to Bridgertonโs way of putting the female gaze first. Essentially, the show is based around this, so by making another season filled with sex scenes for the sake of it (based on the characters it focussed on), this element would have been largely redundant to their arcs.
The showโs intimacy coordinator, Lizzy Talbot affirmed that season two always set out to be different.
โIn this season, it was going to be about enemies-to-lovers, the intense build up, and the space betweenโthe electricity thatโs happening in the space between these two characters and watching that slowly draw closer and closer together,โ she explained in an interview with Glamour.
She added that because Kate seemed more comfortable, more aware of sex than season oneโs lead protagonist Daphne, it allowed more freedom for her character development.
โItโs not about what [Kate and Anthony] are learningโitโs about what they desire. They already know what they want, so that leads a whole lot of the choreography.โ
And despite their characters being a littleโฆ friskier in the book, the TV adaptationโs showrunner Chris Van Dusen said that the build up of sexual tension between the two was palpableโand therefore, it kept viewers hooked for longer.
โIt was incredibly dynamic and exciting, having those steamy scenes and all that angst and all that yearning and watching their chemistry build and build really makes the payoff worth it when we get there,โ Van Dusen explained to The Hollywood Reporter.
He added: โWe never do a sex scene for the sake of doing the sex scene, and we never will,โ he says. โAll the intimate scenes, they have a larger purpose. Theyโre all telling a story and theyโre all pushing the story forward.โ
The eventual sex scene between Kate and Anthony was very slowly plotted out, as well. Per THR, Ashley and Bailey had a Zoom session with the episodeโs director Cheryl Dunye where the broke down the scene shot by shot.
โThere were zero surprises, and then we could just focus on bringing the love story to life. I felt very, very comfortable.โ