“I don’t think she’s after a husband at all. She wants to feel alive again, and Lord Marcus is lovely for that.”
Photo: LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX
Spoilers for Bridgerton season three, part two follow.
With half of her children married by the end of Bridgerton’s third season, now might be an auspicious time for Violet, portrayed by Ruth Gemmell, to experience her own garden in bloom. Ever since her husband died from a bee sting, the matriarch has smoothly guided her octet of rapscallions through proposals, scandals, and balloon disasters. But you know what? Mommy needs a break, too. Right on cue, the dashing Lord Marcus Anderson (Daniel Francis) — who also lost his spouse and has older children — enters from the countryside, and the duo find a comfortable, flirtatious rhythm whenever they run in to each other. The only obstacle is that this hunk is her best friend Lady Danbury’s (Adjoa Andoh) estranged brother, forming an odd isosceles triangle of Regency relations. Violet isn’t uninterested in exploration, but she’s first and foremost a girls’ girl. “I will not know if I’m ready for that until after the affairs are in order,” she cautions the lord of their potential courtship, “especially because I’m not the only one whose affairs need ordering.” In 2024 terms, Violet needs him to get his shit together.
Gemmell was initially taken aback by Violet’s romantic story line, as such a narrative was never written into the Bridgerton books, which she devoured before filming the show. “There’s something fundamental where I’d like to honor the books,” she admits. And while the potential couple has never shared so much as a peck on the cheek this season (the finale ends with them enjoying a ballroom dance), should they evolve into more, Gemmell is preemptively saying no to any sex scenes.
A recurring word to describe female characters this season is clever and whether they possess that quality as a personality trait. Would you say Violet falls within the scope of clever characters?
I certainly think she’s erudite and wise. She knows her children far better than they know themselves. She understands how to steer them when she has an inkling of where they’d like to be. If you want to say that’s clever, then she is. In the final Bridgerton book, there’s a little bit of a backstory for Violet about her journey as a young woman, meeting her husband, and having a young marriage. She was wise back then. A lot of actors love backstories, but I don’t ever seek them out. For me, it’s in the words and between the lines of the script, and that’s where it stops. I’ll happily entertain someone I’m working with if that’s what they want to do, but that’s not something I enjoy.
I’m very interested in dissecting the scene from the finale with Violet and Lady Danbury because there’s subtext that might go over viewers’ heads who didn’t watch Queen Charlotte. Were you surprised that Violet was able to move on from the fact that her best friend slept with her father, even if it was decades ago?
There’s a scene in Queen Charlotte where she almost goes there and then brings it back from the brink, as if she can’t broach the subject. There was a silent understanding. It was best to leave things as they were. I think there were certain women in Violet’s life who held her together when her husband died, and Lady Danbury was chief among them. Violet had a difficult relationship with her mother, and her father was everything to her. She was around someone who loved her father as much as she did — differently, but you know what I mean.
This woman means everything to Violet, so it was quite nice to have acknowledgment of the truth between each other in that scene. She’s willing to forgive and set it aside. I love doing scenes with Adjoa. Every time, there’s something slightly more revealed about their relationship and friendship. Violet knows the things that matter to her. I don’t think the scene was about forgiveness but rather an understanding. These are two women who understand grief.
I’m firmly a believer that friendships are just as worthy of a “love story” descriptor as romance is.
Absolutely. Violet tends to be slightly petulant with her, but then they make up. That’s friendship for you. Sometimes you can forgive a friend far easier than your family.
If you found out your best friend slept with your father, would you be as forgiving?
I don’t know if I could forgive. It might be a no from me. That’s kind of strange, now that you’ve put it like that. It was a very different time, I guess.
Do you find it strange that Bridgerton’s whimsical motif is a bee, especially since it’s what killed Violet’s husband?
It’s definitely something we joke about and torment each other with, especially within the family. It’s hilarious. I don’t know the reason why the bee was chosen.
There’s a quote from Lady Featherington from earlier in the season that was along the lines of, “Ladies don’t have dreams, they have husbands.” It got me thinking about Violet’s dreams and how they’ve changed as she moved from wife to widow. Have you given that much thought?Violet was a wallflower, and I think it was a surprise to her that she fell in love. It was a means of freedom to get married, certainly to Violet, because it was such a loving relationship. That’s why she always makes sure her children pursue loving relationships, because for the girls it means respect and freedom. Violet has thrown herself into her children and survived quite well. But now she’s dipping her toe into the water of embracing life again. The writers might have a different idea about what that means, but I can’t see her pursuing a husband. I can see her pursuing the idea of companionship — she knows what she’s missed the last few years. But I don’t think any man will come between her and her children or her friendships.
Which child do you think Violet is most similar to?
I would say she’s like all eight of them. And all of them have traits of Violet within them, just like they have traits of their father. They’re a myriad of those two people. I don’t think she has a favorite child, but she’ll always miss the one who isn’t there the most.
Violet and Francesca’s most potent argument this season is about Francesca’s choice in husband and how it’s different from what Violet envisioned for her. At this point in her life, what’s the love Violet wants for herself?
Francesca teaches her something that has altered her mind a bit. One of the things Violet says, just as Francesca is about to get married, is that she’s taught her not every love has to be all-encompassing like a thunderbolt. It can be slow and quiet. It can be gentle. I think that will suit Violet going forward because she’s already had the greatest love of her life. She wouldn’t trust a relationship if it was the same. She can pursue embracing life again through being taught something by her daughter, and that’s what she’ll be after — something gentle and different from what she’s had before.
With the Bridgerton children, we’ve seen love stories ranging from dramatic and passionate to quiet and timid. How do you envision Violet’s relationship with Lord Marcus unfolding?
Violet never remarried and she never took a lover because no one ever came close to her husband. There’s a conversation in a later book where Violet says as much. There’s one moment in a book where she enjoys dancing with someone, but her children don’t like it and think it’s strange. She overhears them and finds it amusing. Now that she’s embracing life again in the show, I’d like it to be tentative and honor some part of the books. I don’t think she’s after a husband at all. She wants to feel alive again and Lord Marcus is lovely for that. It’s like a meeting of the minds.
There’s a scene between the two where they talk about their children and their spouses’ passing. It’s a recognition between two people of the need to not feel alone anymore. Where it goes from there I can’t say because I have no control over it. His children have left and her children are leaving, so there’s a mirror being held up: Look at the void you’ve had in your life. There’s something quite nice about realizing this type of thing later in life, rather than hastily going open arms into something. I’m curious what the ton will make of it. Will they even care? I haven’t asked the writers why they’ve chosen this new story for Violet. I’ve told them things that have resonated with me from the books, but that’s all I can do.
Would you consider doing a sex scene if it was appropriate for the story?
I don’t want to get my ass out for anyone. And I don’t think anyone would be interested in my ass, and that’s fine.
