
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Fans of the original series that inspired the breakout hit “Bridgerton” TV show on Netflix were shocked in the final minutes of the season 3 finale when the character Michael Stirling was introduced by another name—Michaela—and played by a female actress, a change that sets the show up to include a lesbian love story down the line and pushed the series author to step up and defend the swap. (Spoilers below.)</p>


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<figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GettyImages-2152820585.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-62245" style="width:515px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GettyImages-2152820585.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GettyImages-2152820585-200x300.jpg 200w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><strong><em>Brigerton Author Julia Quinn(Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Netflix)</em></strong></figcaption></figure></div>


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The third season of “Bridgerton,” the second half of which was released last week, followed the relationship of Francesca Bridgerton and Earl of Kilmartin John Stirling, who introduces his new wife to his cousin in the final moments of the season.</p>



<p>That cousin, in the books named Michael, was instead introduced as Michaela Stirling and is played by actress Masali Baduza.</p>



<p>The swap likely went unnoticed—and seemed inconsequential—by those who have only watched the show, but fans of the books know that Michael Stirling and Francesca go on to fall in love after John Stirling&#8217;s early death.</p>



<p>With the swap, “Bridgerton” is setting itself up to tell the now-lesbian love story of Francesca and Michaela, a change that sparked such furious online discussion it prompted &#8220;Bridgerton&#8221; author Julia Quinn to issue a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/juliaquinnauthor/?hl=en" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;Monday.</p>



<p>Quinn said she is &#8220;deeply committed to the ‘Bridgerton’ world becoming more diverse and inclusive as the stories move from book to screen,&#8221; and said that, despite some fan “disappointment,” she is confident the season featuring the pair will be the &#8220;most emotional and heart-wrenching story of the show.&#8221;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“Thank you to readers and fans for your feedback. I am grateful for your understanding and touched by your deep commitment to the characters of the Bridgerton world,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/juliaquinnauthor/?hl=en" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Quinn wrote</a>&nbsp;in her statement. “I ask that you grant me and the Shondaland team some faith as we move forward.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The “Bridgerton” TV show, which has broken records for Netflix and streaming since its first season released in 2021, is known for its inclusivity. The show heavily features characters of color despite its regency-era setting and focus on London’s wealthiest families (the queen of England is played by Black actress Golda Rosheuvel) and has included LGBTQ+ love interests before. Most notably, older Bridgerton family sibling Benedict explores his sexuality in the third season and shares several steamy scenes with a man named Paul Suarez. Male characters Brimsley and Reynolds, the queen and king&#8217;s secretaries, respectively, share an explicit romance in the spin-off series &#8220;Queen Charlotte&#8221; and a queer artist named Henry Granville features briefly in the first season of &#8220;Bridgerton.&#8221;</p>


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<figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-62246" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/BRIDGERTON_307_Unit_05670R-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><strong><em>Bridgerton. Luke Thompson as Benedict Bridgerton in episode 307 of Bridgerton. Cr. Liam Daniel/Netflix © 2024</em></strong></figcaption></figure></div>


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>5.5 billion. That&#8217;s how many minutes fans spent streaming &#8220;Bridgerton&#8221; on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/06/18/bridgerton-dominates-streaming-ratings-in-may-but-young-sheldon-captures-more-viewers-overall/">Netflix in May,</a>&nbsp;Nielsen data shows, making it the most-watched show across any streaming platform that month. That number includes streams of season 3 part 1, which released May 16, plus the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/05/15/bridgerton-season-3-netflix-premiere-time-release-date-binge-watch-regency-romance-most-viewed-top-shows/">binge-watching</a>&nbsp;of older seasons.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>Season 4. Netflix back in 2021&nbsp;<a href="https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/bridgerton-season-4-cast-release-date-news" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">confirmed</a>&nbsp;a fourth season of &#8220;Bridgerton,&#8221; but when it will be released and which character will serve as the romantic lead is still unknown.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>The debut of the “Bridgerton” series on Netflix sent sales of Quinn’s original eight-book series soaring. In 2020, the year before the show&#8217;s release, Quinn sold 77,541 books, according to data from Circana Bookscan. The next year, that number shot to 1.6 million and remained high with 1.16 million in 2022. The series sold an additional 495,435 books last year and, so far in 2024, has sold 357,493.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/06/18/bridgerton-dominates-streaming-ratings-in-may-but-young-sheldon-captures-more-viewers-overall/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>&#8216;Bridgerton&#8217; Dominates Streaming Ratings In May-But &#8216;Young Sheldon&#8217; Captures More Viewers </strong></a></p>


BRIDGERTON_306_Unit_01860R

‘Bridgerton’ Gender Swap Controversy Explained: Why ‘Michaela Stirling’ Has Thrust Fans Into Turmoil

<p class="speakable-paragraph inlined-image">Shonda Rhimes may have defined Thursday night television, but she&#8217;s now dictating the medium&#8217;s future. When the&nbsp;<em>Grey&#8217;s Anatomy</em>&nbsp;creator signed a nine figure, four-year deal with Netflix last year, she cemented her place&nbsp;at the forefront of entertainment&#8217;s digital future-and pioneered Netflix&#8217;s handsome producer paydays.</p>
<p>Rhimes, who created and executive produced ABC hits including&nbsp;<em>Scandal</em>and&nbsp;<em>How To Get Away with Murder</em>, is now developing eight shows for the streaming service through her production outfit ShondaLand.</p>
<p>&#8220;We are powerful women and when we say we have power, what we are really saying is that we deserve to have power. We deserve whatever good thing it is that we are getting,&#8221; said&nbsp;Rhimes at&nbsp;<em data-ga-track="ExternalLink:https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/rambling-reporter/shonda-rhimes-talks-netflix-pay-at-elle-women-hollywood-awards-1152606">Elle</em>&nbsp;magazine’s 25th annual Women in Hollywood celebration.</p>
<blockquote><p>Demanding what you deserve can feel like a radical act.</p></blockquote>
<p>Worth an estimated $135 million, Rhimes is the wealthiest female showrunner&#8211;the person who oversees writing and production of each TV episode-in&nbsp;Hollywood. She has said that her deal, which&nbsp;reportedly&nbsp;includes a base salary of $150 million with incentives that could bump it much higher, is bigger than the $300 million secured by Ryan Murphy.</p>
<p>Rhimes is just one of the world&#8217;s most powerful women in media and entertainment effecting change and impacting her industry with groundbreaking deals and inclusive storytelling. Take Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, who has&nbsp;helped pioneer&nbsp;<em>Star Wars</em>&#8216; most inclusive casting yet.&nbsp;Under Kennedy&#8217;s stewardship, Kelly Marie Tran became the first woman of color to have a lead role in the multi-billion dollar franchise, playing Rose Tico in 2017&#8217;s&nbsp;<em>The Last Jedi</em>.</p>
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<p>Across the lot, Dana Walden has seen her power grow in the studio landscape. Following Disney&#8217;s $71.3 billion acquisition of the majority of&nbsp;21st Century Fox, the former chair and CEO of Fox Television Group will also head up 20th Century Fox TV, ABC Studios, the Freeform network, ABC-owned TV stations, ABC Entertainment and several other divisions.</p>
<p>Walden believes more women need to be in decision-making roles at every level. &#8220;There must be women in the highest ranks of every organization, and meaningful female representation on every corporate board,&#8221; Walden&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinehoward/2017/11/01/15-most-powerful-women-in-entertainment-and-media-2017-effecting-change-tackling-sexual-harassment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga-track="InternalLink:https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinehoward/2017/11/01/15-most-powerful-women-in-entertainment-and-media-2017-effecting-change-tackling-sexual-harassment/">told Forbes last year</a>.</p>
<blockquote><p>Our recruiting and our training has to be oriented to ensure that we’re identifying and nurturing future generations of female leaders.</p></blockquote>
<p>Entertainment&#8217;s most powerful&nbsp;span Hollywood, music and publishing. As each segment continues to deal with the fallout of the #MeToo movement, women have taken action. Anna Wintour, who continues to control&nbsp;<em>Vogue</em>,&nbsp;suspended photographers Bruce Weber and Mario Testino amid sexual misconduct charges and set a code of conduct for models and photographers.</p>
<p>Wintour teamed up with music power woman Beyoncé for the September issue of&nbsp;<em>Vogue</em>; she was given creative control over her cover photo and leveraged that power to hire the first African American photographer to shoot the cover in the magazine&#8217;s&nbsp; 126-year history. Another first for Beyoncé: In 2018, she became the first black woman to headline Coachella.</p>
<p><strong>Here&#8217;s the full list of Media and Entertainment power women:</strong></p>
<p>1. Oprah Winfrey, Media mogul</p>
<p>2. Shari Redstone, Vice Chair, CBS &amp; Viacom</p>
<p>3. Bonnie Hammer, Chair, NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment</p>
<p>4. Donna Langley,&nbsp; Chair, Universal Pictures</p>
<p>5. Anna Wintour, Artistic Director, Conde Nast</p>
<p>6. Beyoncé, Singer</p>
<p>7. Dana Walden, Chairman, Disney TV Studios and ABC Entertainment</p>
<p>8. Katharine Viner, Editor-in-Chief, Guardian</p>
<p>9. Taylor Swift, Singer</p>
<p>10. Zanny Minton Beddoes, Editor-in-Chief, The Economist</p>
<p>11. Kathleen Kennedy, President, Lucasfilm</p>
<p>12. Shonda Rhimes, Showrunner</p>
<p>13. Arianna Huffington, Founder &amp; CEO, Thrive Global</p>
<p>14. Serena Williams, Tennis player</p>
<p>15. Shobhana Bhartia, Chair, HT&nbsp;Media</p>
<p>16. Priyanka Chopra,&nbsp;Actress</p>
<p><strong>&#8211;&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga-track="contrib block byline"><strong>Natalie Robehmed</strong></a><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga-track="contrib block byline">:</a><em>&nbsp;I&#8217;m an associate editor at Forbes covering media and entertainment, with a focus on the movie business. For the magazine, I&#8217;ve written cover stories on&nbsp;</em></p>
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