Warning: This article contains spoilers for the season two finale of “Bridgerton.”
Eloise Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington’s friendship is one of the strongest relationships on “Bridgerton” — but, dear reader, it’s put to the test in season two.
While viewers learned at the end of the Regency-set Netflix hit’s first season that it was Penelope moonlighting as Lady Whistledown all along, Eloise is still in the dark as to the elusive gossip columnist’s true identity throughout most of the new season. But after she discovers Penelope’s secret in the season two finale, the longtime best friends’ tension culminates in an explosive argument, which ends with Eloise telling Penelope, “I wish never to see or speak to you again.”
Claudia Jessie, who plays Eloise, told TODAY that she was “very excited” to see the storyline unfold when she read the script.
“It’s a very yummy position to be in as the audience, knowing something that the characters don’t know,” she said. “That’s sort of the best position to be in as a viewer. It’s very satisfying. … It’s really good high-stakes.”
Jessie said she and co-star Nicola Coughlan, who plays Penelope, would hug it out between takes while filming the fight scene.
“We’ve been hugging a lot on set to be like, ‘Don’t worry, everything’s OK,’” she said.
“I love that scene,” she added. “Because it’s not like a screaming match, is it? It’s very contained. It’s very serious and intense because it’s this massive thing happening between them.”
Jessie’s favorite part about outspoken Eloise and wallflower Penelope’s friendship is that it’s “sort of thoughtless.”
“It’s just there, isn’t it?” she said, comparing the relationship to the one she shares with her real-life best friend.
“I mean, I don’t think about it, like, she’s just my left leg or something,” Jessie said. “She’s like an extension of my body and we can chat nonsense with each other and then have, like, really beautiful, deep discussions, but she’s the most important. I love her with my whole heart.”
Jessie added, “I also love how much Eloise drags Penelope out of rooms. She just scoops her in her arms, saying, ‘I’ve got something to tell you.’ But yeah, I love how effortless it is.”
Until it stops being so effortless. Coughlan reflected on what went wrong between the two fan-favorite characters (known as “Peneloise” on social media).
“The level of arrogance to (Penelope) this time, I think, is really her downfall in a way, because she really needs Eloise’s approval — if Eloise doesn’t think Whistledown is smart and funny and great, it’s going to really eat at Penelope,” Coughlan told TODAY. “And I have so many lines where Penelope will be like, ‘But isn’t Whistledown still a source of amusement? Don’t you think Whistledown is still funny?’ So she needs Eloise to think she’s great.
“And then Eloise is rightfully furious with her. They’ve never had a fight like that, ever. So I think hearing it is so cutting. She’s trying to say sorry first but then, you know, Eloise cuts her deep, and I think the Featherington in her comes out. … So instead of just going, ‘You’re wrong, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean this,’ she just fires back at her. And it’s so awful. Shooting it was heart-wrenching and terrible. And when she just goes on the attack, it’s completely just because she’s going, ‘Well, I gave this up for you and you didn’t even appreciate it.’”
According to Coughlan, the actors’ real-life friendship is “a bit of a reverse” of their characters’, with her identifying as the more outspoken one. And fortunately, they had plenty of praise for each other as scene partners.
“Claudia is the loveliest person to film scenes with because she’s just a really generous actor, really kind,” said Coughlan. “When we first read, we didn’t know that that was going to happen. But we certainly had an inkling because we didn’t get all the scripts at once. So when we found out, we were like, ‘Oh, my God, this is going to be heartbreaking.’ We just sort of had lots of hugs that day.”
“And I’m, like,’What does this mean for the future?” Coughlan added. “Can they just make up straightaway?’ You know, they can’t — it wouldn’t make sense — but I feel sad that I may have less starting next season without her. I’m just like, “They have to make up. they have to.’”
During the pair’s final confrontation, Eloise blames Penelope’s manipulation for ending her relationship with printer’s assistant Theo Sharpe (Calam Lynch), which she calls “one of the only good things in my life.”
Jessie weighed in on whether Eloise and Theo will see more of each other in the series’ third season, and explore their romantic tension.
“I’d love to, because obviously Eloise didn’t get to be honest about why they can’t work,” she said. “The reason she ended this is because she had Penelope in the back of her head telling her not to go there, you know, not to be in this situation. So I would love for them to be able to have an honest talk about it, because he thinks it’s because they can’t transcend class. He thinks it’s because ‘You like the idea of me, but the reality of me, you don’t.’”
Jessie shared what else she envisions for the next installment of “Bridgerton.”
“In season two, you see (Eloise) entering different parts of society, different groups of people and challenging new ideas and interesting topics and debates and all of that sort of stuff,” she said. “You know, I really hope they continue to explore that. Because whilst obviously romance is such an important part of this show, I think it’d be cool to kind of see Eloise get political.”
She added, “And I’d like Eloise and Penelope to make friends again as quickly as possible.”
