'Bridgerton' Season 2 Clip Introduces New Heroine Kate Sharma

'Bridgerton' Season 2  Clip Introduces New Heroine Kate Sharma

Bridgerton is inarguably one of the most anticipated shows returning to Netflix in 2022. The runaway hit based on Julia Quinn's Regency-era set romances featuring the aristocratic Bridgerton family in 1810s London has become the streaming service's most-watched series ever. (At least, according to its own reporting.) So far, each season looks to cover one book of the nine-installment book series, with a different Bridgerton sibling taking center stage for their romantic happily-ever-afters. Season 1 was Daphne, now Season 2 rounds back to the beginning of the alphabetically ordered kids to eldest brother Anthony.

Anthony Bridgerton was an antagonist in Season 1, built up into a fearsomely over-productive brother who was incompetent at relationships to boot. Season 2 needs to back peddle a bit on that front in making him the romantic hero for the new season, but it seems they've found a thoughtful way to do it: give him a love interest who has no time for his idiot nonsense. That follows the books, where his opposite, Kate, is as overprotective of her younger sister when Anthony comes courting. But from the first clip, fans can see the show is upping the ante.

Ruth Gemmell as Lady Violet, Claudia Jessie as Eloise, Jonathan Bailey as Anthony, Luke Thompson as Benedict
Ruth Gemmell as Lady Violet, Claudia Jessie as Eloise, Jonathan Bailey as Anthony, Luke Thompson as Benedict in 'Bridgerton' Season 2 (LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX)

One significant difference for the series is that Kate's family are not longtime London players, with Kate having ten years of being a wallflower under her belt. Instead, they are newcomers from India, in keeping with the show's inclusive themes and casting. Both actresses who play Sharma sisters Kate and Edwina, Simone Ashley (Sex Education) and Charithra Chandran (Alex Rider), were on hand to introduce the clip where Kate and Anthony confront each other during the ton's endless ball season.