Dearest gentle reader, I regret to inform you that the relationship between the leading lady and her lover goes no further than that of fiction.
Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton’s characters chemistry that’s out of this world in Season 3, which premiered on May 16 on Netflix. Newton previously described the relationship between Penelope and Colin as a “real slow burn” and now fans are wondering if this “slow burn” also applies to their personal lives.
Rumors of the pair dating began after the two actors were seen holding hands during the Bridgerton Season 3 launch at Milton Park Country House in Australia on April 21. At the event, Coughlan told the audience that it was so easy to build chemistry with Newton as they “stopped repressing it” in Season 3.
The pair even had a steamy scene together, where Coughlan shared how comfortable they were with one another while filming. She told SiriusXM Hits 1 and 7NewsAustralia that she and Newton broke a piece of furniture while filming a sex scene. The actress added that due to their long years of friendship, she and Newton can “laugh about it.” Newton agreed by saying, “It felt like a really safe space.”
Coughlan felt that their sex scene embodied pure romance, as she and Newton looked back at it. She said, “It’s crazy because I felt like those scenes would be terrifying to watch back, and they were initially. But then when I watched them, I went, ‘No, they’re everything we wanted them to be and more.’ They’re really romantic. They’re beautifully written. They feel sexy, they’re exciting. I couldn’t be happier, honestly.” It’s safe to say that the genuine love that these two have for one another explains why fans would believe that they’re an actual couple.
So the big question remains: Are Newton and Coughlan dating IRL?
Although a romance between the two Bridgerton leads would be a wonderful thing to witness, a source close to the actors told PEOPLE that “they are not dating” and instead are“supportive co-stars for each other.”
Through spending so much time together, Newton and Coughlan’s friendly bond allows them to share many similarities that they never knew they shared before, which they told Town & Country in May 2024. “We ended up spending so much more time together. We both are very sensitive people, and it can be a difficult thing to be a sensitive person. It can be misunderstood as weakness, but I don’t think it is weak. Sensitivity is a really important thing to have as an actor.” Coughlan said. “I would think we’re both quite empathetic, also. If there’s someone acting badly, we both soak it in.”
Penolope and Colin’s friends-to-lovers build-up had fans anxiously waiting to see where their long-awaited romance would lead them. Although many fans can envision the actors getting together IRL, Newton admitted that friends-to-lovers is not a usual thing in his romantic relationships, which he says sets him apart from Colin. “If I meet someone, I know immediately. There’s a difference between me and Colin,” he told Town & Country,
Meanwhile, Coughlin likes the idea of romantical trope, telling Town & Country, “You’ve skipped all of the posturing and all of the initial things you do when you meet someone — you try and pretend to have only nice underwear, or that you don’t sit on the couch and eat your dinner off your lap. Because they’ve been friends first, they go, ‘I know you.’ Deep, true, abiding love comes from when you love the bones of someone. You love them deeply in their entirety. That’s a thing that you get with friends-to-lovers, because you love them first as a friend.”