What makes Bridgerton so bingeable? It holds men to women’s beauty standards

When it became clear that season three of Bridgerton would focus on Penelope Featherington (played by Nicola Coughlan) and Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton), social media was flooded with concerned (mostly female) viewers worrying that Newton wouldn’t stack up against previous male leads in terms of his hotness.

By then, the series had earned a reputation for delivering very attractive male leads and catering to the female gaze – and many felt that Newton’s appearance, while pleasant, couldn’t compete with actors like Regé-Jean Page and Jonathan Bailey, whose faces (and bodies) were more chiselled.

Nicola Coughlan takes the romantic lead in Bridgerton season 3.Credit: Netflix

Shortly after, images began circulating of Newton with some clear differences in his “look” – a sharper jawline and cheekbones, fuller lips, a new hairdo – that were more in line with masculinity standards dictated by the fans. While some speculated plastic surgery, others seemed convinced it was just “the Bridgerton effect”, where the show’s excellent hair and makeup department had worked their magic.

Regardless of how it came about, Newton’s transformation confirmed one thing: to be a Bridgerton man, you have to look like you could convincingly grace the cover of a romance novel. And if you don’t, you’re simply not hot enough.

In contrast, the series has been lauded for breaking beauty standards for women, casting female actors from different cultural backgrounds with different looks, and, this season, featuring a “plus- size” actress as their romantic lead (there is much debate about whether Coughlan actually qualifies as plus-sized).

It might seem like the show is promoting a double standard by expecting the male leads to go to extraordinary lengths to enhance their appearance for the sake of fans’ expectations while simultaneously breaking down stereotypes for women. But, as with all presumed double standards, the reality is more complex.

The one thing we’ve learned over decades of watching actors arrive on the world stage and be labelled heartthrobs is that the burden of attractiveness rests much more easily on men than it does on women.

If a male actor is objectified by female fans, it has an overwhelmingly positive drive on his career. He will rise to the top quickly as appetite for his beautiful face gives producers a good incentive to cast him in their projects and cash in on his popularity. Fans will show support for his projects and offer praise and support. Importantly, his career will be aided by his looks but not defined by them.

We’ve watched Ryan Gosling and Brad Pitt rise to fame through romantic comedies and dramas before segueing to critically acclaimed arthouse films without a flicker of cognitive dissonance about how their looks impact their ability to take on more serious roles.

In contrast, female actors who are considered sex symbols are defined by their looks and objectified in the truest sense of the word. Take Margot Robbie, for example. In order to be cast in, and critically acclaimed for, meatier roles in films like I, Tonya and Mary Queen of Scots, she had to become almost unrecognisable through prosthetics, makeup and wigs. In transforming herself into someone less conventionally attractive, she earned her “serious actor” stripes (before facing a backlash for starring in Barbie and being declared “mid” by men on the internet).

Even more striking is the fact that, despite being heralded as a trailblazer for taking the romantic lead in season three of Bridgerton, Coughlan has been entirely unable to escape commentary on her body. The intention might have been to celebrate diversity and suggest size is irrelevant (especially considering the show’s decision not to mirror the book’s plot where her character loses weight to secure the man), but viewers and the media can’t stop talking about her body.

How much does she weigh? What is her dress size? Has she lost weight? Was it difficult for her to bare her body in intimate scenes? How brave she is for doing it at all!

More than once, Coughlan has had to state that she would prefer people keep their thoughts and discussions about her body to themselves because she has nothing to say on the topic.

Meanwhile, as fans continue to dissect Newton’s appearance changes, the overwhelming reaction to his glow-up has been positive and undoubtedly will lead to even more career success after the show concludes.

We might be seeing a minor shift in what female bodies we allow to grace the screen, but until the discussion around women’s bodies ceases altogether – at least until they see the same return on investment that their male counterparts enjoy – there’s little to celebrate.

Zoya Patel is an author and freelance writer.

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