As speculation swirls around when Bridgerton will return with Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Baek’s romance in Season 4, the rumor mill is also spinning about which Bridgerton sibling will take over the reins as lead in Season 5. Netflix confirmed that the popular romance series, based on Julia Quinn’s novels, had been renewed for a fifth and sixth season in May.
While the streamer nor Shondaland have confirmed which siblings will lead those seasons, it’s all but assured that Eloise and Francesca, respectively, will. After all, Hyacinth and Gregory are still rather young to see their source material adapted. As for which Bridgerton sisters’ story works best for Season 5, all – or most – signs point to Eloise and Quinn’s To Sir Phillip With Love.
Of course, the order of Bridgerton’s seasons has differed from the books before. Colin and Penelope’s romance swapped places with Benedict and Sophie’s, but that’s the only time anything like that has happened. While the precedent has been set, there’s some symmetry, like Daphne & Simon in Season 1 and Anthony & Kate in Season 2, in Eloise — the fifth-born Bridgerton — taking center stage in the fifth season of the show.
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What Is Known About Bridgerton Season 5?
The season’s leads are a mystery and will likely remain so for the audience until the end or even after Season 4. However, Bridgerton’s creatives already know what’s coming. Showrunner Jess Brownell told Variety in June 2024, “Shonda and I have talked about who Season 5 is and who Season 6 is. We haven’t talked beyond that. If we are lucky enough to have a Season 6, we want to just have that plan, so we know where we’re headed.” While at Edinburgh Film Festival in June 2025, executive producer Shonda Rhimes shared that she thinks the show will run for “exactly eight” seasons. “The Bridgerton series is eight children. Violet Bridgerton and all eight of her children married. So every season is a child.”
Those comments don’t confirm or deny that Eloise’s season will precede Benedict’s. An Instagram post from author Julia Quinn may. Earlier this month, Quinn posted a photo taken from a video of herself and Claudia Jessie on the set of Bridgerton Season 1. Jessie said, “I know everything,” in response to what Eloise gets up to in the books, including To Sir Phillip With Love. Quinn’s caption read, “Looking back… and looking ahead.” The author doesn’t state that Eloise is next, only that her story awaits, which coincides with Rhimes’s comments. Still, the reference to the novel insinuates that Eloise will one day experience some version of the events in To Sir Phillip With Love.
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Should Francesca Lead Season 5 Instead?
Speculating who will lead Bridgerton Season 5 is a true guessing game. It’s like wondering when the season may debut on Netflix. However, like the previous seasons, the story itself signals who should be next, and it’s Eloise Bridgerton. Of course, the fourth season has yet to be released on Netflix. When it streams sometime in 2026, those eight episodes may change this theory. However, it makes sense for Eloise to be next. It’s too early for Francesca Bridgerton’s story.
For those who don’t mind spoilers, Francesca’s husband, John Stirling, dies in Quinn’s When He Was Wicked, and the book follows Francesca’s romance with John’s cousin, Michael. Bridgerton Season 3 sees Francesca and John marry and introduces Michaela Stirling. That progression gets very close to the content of Francesca’s book. As far as the TV show is concerned, though, losing John in Season 4 is too soon. If Bridgerton wants his death to be devastating for the characters, namely Francesca and Michaela, and the audience, then it needs to take its time getting there. The more that John is known and, therefore, loved, the more heartbreaking it will all be. Also, selfishly, I don’t want to lose John yet.
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Does Bridgerton Set Eloise Up as Season 5’s Lead?
In the meantime, Bridgerton Season 4 can tee up Eloise’s story by simply reintroducing Chris Fulton as Sir Phillip Crane. He first appeared in Season 1 to marry the Featheringtons’ cousin, Marina Thompson, to honor his late brother’s wish. He last appeared in Bridgerton Season 2, Episode 4, “Victory.” If the show wants to keep Eloise with her book endgame, it will be helpful, if only for the audience, to give Phillip another guest spot ahead of Season 5. My theory about why Phillip returns, what the show pulls from the books, and how that connects to where Season 4 may find Eloise is the topic for another article. For now, Bridgerton more than positions Eloise as the logical lead of Season 5.
After Season 3, Eloise sees her best friend in a loving marriage that gives Penelope the independence to continue writing. In Season 4, Eloise will watch Benedict, the sibling she is closest to, find happiness he least expects in a love story that is so grand that it’s inspiring. In To Sir Phillip with Love, Quinn writes, “Benedict and Sophie’s love story was legendary in their family. It had been one of the reasons Eloise had refused so many proposals of marriage. She’d wanted that kind of love and passion and drama.” So, even as aspects of characters and stories reasonably change from page to screen, it’s challenging to imagine Bridgerton is heading anywhere other than Eloise’s happily ever after soon.
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Do you think that Eloise will be the lead of Bridgerton Season 5? Let us know in the comments below!
Bridgerton is streaming on Netflix now.
