Benedict’s flirtation with artist Sir Henry Granville in the first season of Bridgerton seemed to imply that Lady Violet’s second son might be gay, or at least bisexual.
So imagine fans’ surprise when Benedict’s apparent interest in men in Season 2 (now on Netflix) evaporated like the Duke of Hastings himself. Instead, the character focuses his sexual and romantic energy on Tessa, a woman he attended art school with.
According to showrunner Chris Van Dusen, the sparks that flew between Benedict and Henry in Season 1 were never meant to indicate that the former was gay.
“I saw a lot of discussion about Benedict’s sexuality in Season 1,” Van Dusen admits to TVLine. “But the plot [of him befriending] Henry was really about tolerance in a really intolerant time and showing Benedict in that world. I love the story in season 1 and would love to continue it into the future.”
In Julia Quinn’s third Bridgerton novel, An Offer from a Gentleman, Benedict falls in love with and marries a Cinderella-like woman named Sophie. However, Van Dusen says viewers will “have to wait and see” if the character’s “sexuality” becomes “fluent” as the series progresses, adding, “It was a conscious decision not to make her fluent in Season 2.”