How Luke Newton’s Spontaneous Adjustments to Colin’s Handling of Penelope’s Dress Elevated the ‘Bridgerton’ Carriage Scene
Bridgerton season’s carriage scene would certainly shock the ton, and one specific moment was all because of actor Luke Newton.
This post has spoilers for Bridgerton season 3, part 1.
Colin (Newton) and Penelope’s (Nicola Coughlan) romance reaches its pinnacle in the carriage. After Penelope runs out of a ball, following suitor Lord Debling’s (Sam Phillips) rejection, she is ready to head home. The carriage doesn’t get too far before Colin runs after it to confess his love for his longtime friend.
Following Colin’s declaration, Pen reveals that she feels the same and they proceed to hook up in the vehicle. Their steamy tryst is ultimately interrupted when the carriage pulls up at Bridgerton House, where the driver was instructed to drop off Colin. Before exiting the vehicle, Newton’s Colin used just a few fingers to slide Penelope’s dress sleeve back up onto her shoulder.
The dalliance — set to an orchestral version of Pitbull’s “Give Me Everything” — has been perhaps the most-talked-about scene on social media since the show premiered on Thursday, May 16. Fans were particularly obsessed with Colin using only a couple of fingers to fix his love’s gown.
Andrew Ahn, a director on Bridgerton season 3, has confirmed that the action was the 31-year-old actor’s idea.
“I wish I could take credit for this incredible moment of … physical authenticity, but I did not give this piece of direction,” Ahn wrote via X on Saturday, May 18. “It was all Luke Newton!”
At the end of the scene, Colin hops out of the carriage and extends his hand to Penelope to follow his lead.
“Are you coming with me?” Colin asks. When she hesitates, he exclaims, “For God’s sake, Penelope. Are you going to marry me or not?”
Before Penelope can reply, the camera fades to black in a tease that her answer will be featured in the second part of the new season.
Newton and Coughlan, 37, have not spoiled how their characters’ love story plays out — four new episodes will drop on June 13 — but they trusted each other to film the romantic scenes.
“It didn’t feel stilted or choreographed,” Coughlan told Today earlier this month. “We were just like, ‘I trust you. You trust me. Let’s do this. Let’s make this the best it can be.’”
Coughlan and Newton were so in the moment that they did not hear production tell them, “Cut.”
“So they were looking at us on the monitors being like, ‘What are they doing?’” Coughlan recalled. “The director had to come over and be like, ‘What were you doing? We told you to stop!’”
Bridgerton season 3, part 1 is currently streaming on Netflix.
