Bridgerton's latest couple is coming together. After Netflix previously announced that Luke Thompson's Benedict Bridgerton would lead Season 4, adapting Julia Quinn's An Offer From A Gentleman, the series has reportedly cast its Sophie Beckett.
Australian-Korean actor Yerin Ha, who previously led the Paramount+ show Halo, has been cast in the leading role for Bridgerton Season 4, per Variety. The series has become iconic for having people of color in its leading roles and depicting mixed-race couples in its Regency Era before. Ha's casting would give the series its first-ever Korean lead!
Here she is in the context of the Steven Spielberg-produced sci-fi series, which she led as Kwan Ha from 2022 to 2024:
In the report, representatives for Netflix and Shondaland declined to comment on the casting, so it's likely that the actress is still in talks to star in Bridgerton Season 4 and has yet to sign the dotted line. That, or the creatives simply want to wait to give Ha a grand entrance once she arrives on set.
Unlike many of her reported future Bridgerton castmates, Yerin Ha already has some experience leading a series before. She also had multiple-episode arcs on Reef Break and Bad Behaviour, and she seems to have a small role in Max's upcoming Dune series. Of course, once she officially becomes part of Bridgerton, Yerin Ha will immediately become a household name.
As fans of the Julia Quinn novels know, Benedict Bridgerton's love story is a spin on the tale of Cinderella. In An Offer From A Gentleman, Sophie Beckett is the product of an affair the Earl of Penwood had with his maid, and she's raised by her maternal grandmother. As a young woman, Sophie becomes the maid of the household with her father and stepmother. During the "season," she decides to secretly attend the Bridgerton Masquerade Ball, where she will meet Benedict Bridgerton, of course.
During the Season 3 finale, the next Benedict's storyline was teased when the masquerade ball was mentioned in a conversation between the second eldest Bridgerton and Eloise. Funny enough, he said during the scene he'll be "hiding out behind a mask, avoiding eligible ladies like the plague." While we've been a little whatever on Benedict as a character, perhaps, if the series can find a strong characterization of Sophie that breaks the mold in its own way, it can be just as good as the prior seasons.
In the novel, Sophie Beckett has dark blonde hair and green eyes, but as the series has done before, Yerin Ha's casting looks like the producers are ready to offer up more history-making representation by giving audiences the first Korean lead of the franchise.
After Season 2 specifically did an excellent job of bringing Indian characters into the world of Bridgerton, it will be exciting to see how Yerin Ha's Korean roots deepen her love story. While we wait for more news, you can stream the other seasons of Bridgerton now with a Netflix subscription.
