{"id":2390684,"date":"2026-04-27T02:48:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T02:48:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2390684"},"modified":"2026-04-27T02:48:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T02:48:47","slug":"shonda-rhimes-teases-creating-first-queer-bridgerton-storyline-with-francesa-and-michaela-romance-exclusive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/shonda-rhimes-teases-creating-first-queer-bridgerton-storyline-with-francesa-and-michaela-romance-exclusive\/","title":{"rendered":"Shonda Rhimes Teases Creating First Queer \u201cBridgerton\u201d Storyline with Francesa and Michaela Romance (Exclusive)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\">NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong>Key Takeaways<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"mb-4\">\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Shonda Rhimes shares excitement for <em>Bridgerton<\/em> season 5, which features the show\u2019s first queer love story<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Francesca Bridgerton\u2019s storyline shifts from the books to include a romance with Michaela Sterling, promoting inclusivity<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Rhimes says <em>Bridgerton<\/em>\u2019s Regency-era style inspires her home decor, adding glamour with elements like Regency wallpaper<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>Bridgerton<\/em> Executive Producer <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-yga=\"{\" ylinkelement=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/tag\/shonda-rhimes\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Shonda Rhimes;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Shonda Rhimes<\/a> can&#8217;t wait for the Ton to see the show&#8217;s first queer love story.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The <em>Grey&#8217;s Anatomy<\/em> showrunner, 56, spoke to PEOPLE about Season 5 of the show, which focuses on the love story between female leads Francesca Bridgerton (<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-yga=\"{\" ylinkelement=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/tv\/hannah-dodd-facts\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Hannah Dodd;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Hannah Dodd<\/a>) and Michaela Sterling (<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-yga=\"{\" ylinkelement=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/bridgerton-season-5-leads-francesca-michaela-11932990\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Masali Baduza;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Masali Baduza<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;The fans have been so supportive of sort of every direction we&#8217;ve gone with story, which has been wonderful to me. I really thought the reaction to season 4 was extraordinary. I&#8217;m just excited for fans to get to see what we do in Season Five,&#8221; Rhimes says.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-primary p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-primary\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" class=\"flex-none size-4 -scale-x-100 text-primary lg:size-6 [&amp;_path]:fill-current\"><path fill=\"currentColor\" d=\"M3.1 3.1V11h1.8V6.314l5.392 5.393 1.415-1.414L6.313 4.9H11V3.1zm17.8 17.8V13h-1.8v4.686l-5.393-5.393-1.415 1.414 5.393 5.393H13v1.8z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-primary hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p><i>Masali Baduza (left) and Hannah Dodd (right)<br \/>Credit: Netflix<\/i><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Francesca experiences unimaginable loss in season 4 of the show, as the character&#8217;s husband, John Sterling (Victor Alli)<em>, <\/em>dies suddenly in his sleep. Sterling&#8217;s cousin Michaela returns to the family estate in London, and Francesca must decide whether to reenter the marriage market or &#8220;pursue her inner passions,&#8221; according to the logline.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In the <em>Bridgerton<\/em> book series, the novel <em>When He Was Wicked<\/em> follows Francesca as she finds love once more with John&#8217;s cousin Michael Sterling. Author Julia Quinn detailed the decision to instead make Francesca&#8217;s love interest a woman on Instagram in 2024, stating that she is &#8220;deeply committed to the <em>Bridgerton<\/em> world becoming more diverse and inclusive as the stories move from book to screen.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Michaela and Francesca on Season 5 of 'Bridgerton'Credit: Liam Daniel\/Netflix\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/uH7f6voAN3_5teyJpVemsg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/42a4480eb303c66e67337c452849c3cc\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-primary p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-primary\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" class=\"flex-none size-4 -scale-x-100 text-primary lg:size-6 [&amp;_path]:fill-current\"><path fill=\"currentColor\" d=\"M3.1 3.1V11h1.8V6.314l5.392 5.393 1.415-1.414L6.313 4.9H11V3.1zm17.8 17.8V13h-1.8v4.686l-5.393-5.393-1.415 1.414 5.393 5.393H13v1.8z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-primary hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p><i>Michaela and Francesca on Season 5 of &#8216;Bridgerton&#8217;<br \/>Credit: Liam Daniel\/Netflix<\/i><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Rhimes says season 5 has begun filming and that she &#8220;loves&#8221; watching the storyline expand to include relationships that fall outside of the heteronormative mold.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong>Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-yga=\"{\" ylinkelement=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/people-news-daily-newsletter-sign-up-8692701\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:PEOPLE's free daily newsletter;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><strong> PEOPLE&#8217;s free daily newsletter<\/strong><\/a><strong> to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;I&#8217;m really excited. I can&#8217;t tell you any story points because that would be spoilers, but I&#8217;m really excited and we&#8217;ve started filming and I think it&#8217;s been amazing so far,&#8221; the <em>Shondaland<\/em> creator says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The series is set in fictionalized 1813 Regency-era England, and many viewers tune in for its frilly, extravagant fashion.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Rhimes herself is inspired by <em>Bridgerton<\/em>&#8216;s lavish 19th-century style, she told PEOPLE, and has even brought elements its design in her own home.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;I have a lot of Regency wallpaper in my apartments, in my homes. And I try to stay in that world a little bit. I mean, everybody could use a little bit of glamour, right?&#8221; she says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Read the original article on <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-yga=\"{\" ylinkelement=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/shonda-rhimes-teases-creating-first-queer-bridgerton-storyline-11955252\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:People;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">People<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEED TO KNOW Key Takeaways Shonda Rhimes shares excitement for Bridgerton season 5, which features the show\u2019s first queer love story Francesca Bridgerton\u2019s storyline shifts from the books to include a romance with Michaela Sterling, promoting inclusivity Rhimes says Bridgerton\u2019s Regency-era style inspires her home decor, adding glamour with elements like Regency wallpaper Bridgerton Executive [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2390685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[348497,466234,437357,454476,466232,466233,466231,351253],"class_list":["post-2390684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-bridgerton","tag-bridgerton-book","tag-francesca","tag-francesca-bridgerton","tag-john-sterling","tag-michael-sterling","tag-michaela-sterling","tag-shonda-rhimes"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Shonda-Rhimes-Teases-Creating-First-Queer-Bridgerton-Storyline-with-Francesa.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2390684"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390684\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2390686,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390684\/revisions\/2390686"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2390685"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2390684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2390684"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2390684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}