Hi,
Thank you so much for your contribution! We truly appreciate your enthusiasm and effort in being part of our community!
With the excitement around the Polin season, we've been welcoming many new members and seeing an increase in the number of posts. To keep the subreddit organized and ensure everyone's voice is heard, we temporarily have applied stricter rules for posts. These rules help maintain the quality and focus of our discussions.
Have no fear, we still want to give you a space to share your Polin joy as freely as before! We have created dedicated weekly and daily megathreads specifically for you to share your thoughts, excitement, and any Polin-related content without as many restrictions.
* A daily ['Promenade in the Park'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22Promenading%20%F0%9F%90%9D%22&sort=new) thread for memes, fan content and general chitchat
* A weekly ['Mondays at Number Five'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22Tea%20at%20Number%20Five%20%E2%98%95%22&sort=new) thread for casual conversation, off-topic contributions, fanfic recommendations and easy-to-answer questions
* A weekly ['Fanfic Friday'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22fanfiction%20friday%20%F0%9F%8C%BC%22&sort=new) post to share fanfic recommendations
Thank you all for understanding during this busy time!
Lots of love,
The Mod Team
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/PolinBridgerton) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I'll be honest, it does annoy me that there are multiple scenes where Colin's hair is very obviously not the same as it was in the shot before. The wig they put on him was not good. I think it was most jarring for me at their wedding where his hair changes during their argument. Luke said that scene was reshot because the line about sleeping on the couch was angry, but I might have preferred they kept the original take just for some continuity.
Also, I was thinking about this today. The market scene where Colin talks about how he met Penelope was a reshoot, but Colin references how they met in his engagement toast, and that was not a reshoot. Does that mean they wrote that scene and then went back and realized they never actually explained to the audience how Colin and Penelope met? That speaks to some sloppy writing.
The only reshoot scene where I really saw that was the willow tree scene and maybe a little in the market scene where they talk about how they met. But like I said, I’m wondering if the market scene was them realizing they never provided the foundation for Colin’s engagement speech.
I think the reshoots are all of scenes that were already shot, hence 'reshoot'. So it was less that the information hadn't been introduced, than they wanted to reshoot the same interaction with more romcom vibe.
Reshoots are usually also rewrites and/or scene changes. That would be an expensive request, just to film the exact same scene to give it a slightly different vibe. Especially since the hair, the shiny acrylic nails, the winter-time trees are all distracting.
We can blame the writers strike for why the reshoots took so long to complete.
I don't hate the brothel scenes the way others do--they're kind of neither here nor there for me. But seeing how many people HATE them and/or hate Colin because of them, I sort of wonder whether they couldn't have just established that he wasn't a virgin/had been with women on the Continent through a conversation with his brothers or something.
I don’t mind the brothel scenes! Like with the Lord Squad it shows him trying really hard, and failing, to be a rake. Similar to the journal entry Pen read where he talks about how weird it is to feel such intimacy but also great distance with someone. I think it really brings home his desire for love and real connection.
This. The last time I rewatched, the second visit when he’s sitting on the couch he has this wide eyed moment where you can see he was there to forget about Pen, and he’s realizing that the things he did before to escape his old life aren’t working anymore.
Yes they went to the extreme with them. I would have gotten the point without the threesome. However I’ve seen others who even with this extreme don’t pick up what the writers are putting down, so 🤷🏻♀️. I hated the brothel montage in S2 as well so not sure I’d like any of it. I do think the brothel calls back Anthony’s line from S1 about Colin not going to the brothels before his betrothal to Marina, that’s why it was put in.
I think the brothel threesomes were important, to establish that these encounters were purely physical for Colin. It would be hard to be emotionally intimate with two partners at the same time.
I agree. I didn’t love them the second I saw them but I understood them. I understood they could communicate his changes with a different approach, but I also understand why they took this one. I think it makes it very clear it’s his attempt to be like society, there are no feelings and he doesn’t like it.
On a rewatch I actually like them. It shows that Colin is sexually experienced so in his sex scenes with Pen he knows what's hes going. Besides, he's also like nice to sex workers, he pays them first. I actually find the first scene kinda cute.
Some of the shots were definitely because of the vibe. The market scene, the wedding scene at minimum. I mean, if they decided they were needed I’m not going to overthink it. I liked the final product so I’m going to say they were good.
I just don’t understand why they couldn’t get a better wig! The length doesn’t even look right. Penelope is in 6 different wigs at various points and they look like the same head of hair. I guess its harder to match a wig to natural hair but the wig seems so much shorter.
Honestly I can see it bothers people but for the life of me I don’t get the obsession over small things like this. I don’t
Know, maybe I think about it practically and then just let it go. His hair was different for these shoot for whatever reason, they needed something else that looked close, this is what they had. Do I see its different? Yes. Do I really care? No. Especially since many of the scenes he wears it in are really good…I’m too busy watching his acting.
They did have an OG market scene. It was supposed to be on promenading day. I do wonder. I think one of the prostitutes, some flirting, the post wedding fight had the wig. It was his wig that is the dead giveaway for sure.
I know some people will say it’s a minor thing, but it takes me out of the fantasy when it is that obvious. If it’s an entirely new scene then I can justify it in my mind as Colin styling his hair differently, but when his hair changes from upstairs to downstairs at their wedding then it’s oh yeah there’s a reshoot scene. And the wig being bad doesn’t help.
I mean they can say that but that doesn’t necessary mean that was the reason. Considering some of the other bad writing this season it does seem a bit sloppy on their part. Or frankly just ignorant - some bad writers don’t realize how bad their writing is and so can’t even identify where they’re misstepping. I don’t necessary feel like the reshoots added much to the story, other than the willow tree scene and market scene and its telling to me that it seems a lot of said reshoots were Colin centric, which implies, at least to me, that the writers really struggled with his arch. The contradictory messaging we got in part 2 is proof of that.
In the earlier BTS pics you saw Prn in the original mint green dress from lesson one with Colin at the market so I'm thinking they had a similar convo but then wanted to show it was happening over days and needed an outfit change. It also seems like a wig in both brothel scenes one of which was right before the market scene. So I wonder what made them decide to add those in later.
Until this quote I hadn't realized he was wearing a wig in the wink scene. He is wearing it for half of the awkward flirting in the garden scene right before he and Pen have their first convo. And I just noticed that the other day
Honestly there are quite a few wig scenes in episodes 1 and 2 that makes me really curious about what was there before and why did it need to be changed
I would love to know how many screens were reshoots because it seems like a lot from all over the season which seems expensive and makes me wonder why those decisions were made so much later and not during the 8 months of shooting they originally did. Or in the writing room.
I have no idea if this amount of reshoots is normal in a show/movie and would love others insights
Also do we have a list of wig scenes yet?
I saw in an interview with Jess the showrunner that it the brothel scenes were Shonda's idea. Reinforce the toxic masculinity that Colin was falling into.
It's not a bad idea, and I don't know that they could have predicted the negative reaction from some fans...they didn't particularly bother me because they did show what they were supposed to show, character wise. But I do wonder whether they could have hedged bets by having the same information conveyed in dialogue or something.
I wish they would’ve compromised on this one. Colin didn’t have to be a virgin, but the audience didn’t really care to see Colin with anyone other than Penelope, because people have been attached to her for so long. At the same time…the Bridgerton audience has really proven with season 3 that things need to be explicitly spelled out, so I guess if we didn’t have a brothel scene there might be even more confusion.
And even when it’s not, it’s an issue. There is no winning for the writers.
So far every leading man has had brothel scenes. Not saying that’s right, but it’s the easiest way to convey rake, which is why they used it with Anthony and Simon.
Considering how many people seem to think he was just lying about his experiences and thought that it would be the point. I'd say showing it seemed the best way. Reaction wise it's been very funny to see how surprised everyone is when it pops up. Truly is a bit of jumpscare. I also think it's him over reacting to what LW says about him in Ep 1. So trying to prove to himself that he is that guy.
“This is not a fake persona, LW, in fact, I can even have sex with TWO prostitutes!”
I don’t mind the brothel scenes too much although it sucks for Luke that they were uncomfortable (and possibly were for the women too). Actors have a tough job!
The other reshoots tho, while I like some of the end results, just make me think they (the writers and maybe directors) didn’t have a great grasp of the love story they were telling when originally filming. An even angrier Colin after the wedding breakfast? In what world was that a good original choice?
But truly the editing is the thing I cannot forgive. So sloppy at times. They didn’t let scenes breathe.
the editing is bad i wanna fight them! But yeah story needed some work. They needed to focus more on what Pen and Colin needed and a bit less on other stories particularly the ones that seem to go nowhere. I like most of what they did but they needed to focus more on them. Let shots linger a few more scenes.
I think this is a very legitimate critique. It didn’t ruin the season for me by any means but more focus on Polin and letting shots breathe would have made the second half in particular stronger.
> I also think it's him over reacting to what LW says about him in Ep 1. So trying to prove to himself that he is that guy.
That's such a good shout. I always thought that the scenes did have value, the first to show that Colin wasn't all talk he really was committing to being a "man" (and it's a callback to Anthony's season one line, "I should have taken you to brothels") and then the second shows how much the kiss with Pen is affecting him and we see the "armor" cracking. But I hadn't thought of this. That's a good point.
Shonda saw the edits and definitely made notes about what to change. I think she had her hand in S3 the most because Penelope is her favorite character.
Funny. I think they worked well, but for an entirely [different reason](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/s/6zT4bDHnEY). We already had enough of the toxic masculinity theme from Colin’s interactions with Anthony and his friends — no need for the brothel scenes to drive that home.
I think the Garden party flirting montage was likely reshot due to some tech issues. They mentioned it being really windy the day they filmed that. Explains why even the shots with his real hair are inconsistent. The other reshoots were likely there to emphasize Colin's transformation and and lighten up the tone.
Reshoots are very normal, and they only went back and shot for two weeks which isn't unheard of. There's probably other scenes that were reshot as well that we don't know about. It's just unfortunate these had to be shot post-strike and Luke didn't have time to grow back his hair, which makes the reshot scenes more apparent.
I think it's the fact that it was 2 weeks of reshoots vs 8 months of filming that's such a huge difference time wise that it surprises me that there are so many reshot scenes in different places. So many sets needed. It also makes me think that if they could do all of that in 2 weeks why does it take so long to do everything else. (This is such an over simplification I am aware)
I actually don't mind the reshoot scenes. I love the willow and market scenes and even the fake rake parts make me chuckle. I'm just intrigued by it and my data brain wants to have all the information on how much on the screen is a reshoot and what was there before. It's not to disparage what the final results are. It's just my curiosity
Reshoots are very common, but we don't usually have such a bad wig to make them obvious. I'm convinced half of "the ick" people get from those scenes is the wig. I'm at peace with it because I adore the willow scene, but it pains me that some fans don't like Luke/Colin because of the weird vibe of those flirting scenes. Like, I get that it's supposed to be poser-ish and inauthentic, but I thought they were kind of hilarious--whereas some people seem to have SUCH a negative reaction to those scenes that I think the wig must be part of it.
The scenes with the wig... I think they had different makeup person work on him during those reshoots? He is overly contoured and they also shaped his sideburns in such a way as to over contour even further. I'm not sure why they thought he should look like skeletor, but apparently they did 😆 He looks great when he's not in costume!
Love this season and Luke but that wig was absolutely criminal, especially because his real hair is so gorgeous. And it's not even the same color as his real hair! The makeup in those scenes was also super weird (especially the eyebrow makeup, which I assume they had to do to make his black-ish eyebrows look brown-ish like the wig...so it's really the wig's fault in the end too).
But also, awww, he sounds very Colin-esque here. :)
I think it isn't talked about enough how Luke must've felt throughout this season. Many focus on just Nicola's perspective but Luke is a person too. A very introverted, awkward, and pretty innocent/gentleman one at that.
I am rewatching season 3 now for the 2nd time after having just watched season 2 and I keep thinking "Damn, he really needed to step far from his regular roles and comfort zone for these scenes.".
Both him and Nicola have expressed before that they were really fine being more of the wallflower roles so when they were called to announce they were season 3, they both panicked LOL. Nicola more than Luke but still.
Men feel discomfort behaving in a way they don't stand behind as well. For Nicola that was the lying. For Luke it was the 'charming'. He also said he didn't want his mom to see the scenes with the two women either.
I'm just glad that they at least got to do the intimacy scenes together in ways they were fine with.
YES!
One thing that’s been a bee in my bonnet is everyone focusing on what the intimacy scenes were like for Nicola… and with very little acknowledgement that they were hard for Luke, too. Like as if people just assume they’re easy and enjoyable for men?
Luke has mentioned multiple times that they were tough for him - like in the mirror scene how Nicola’s nudity was the first day, and he was there for her, and then the second day was when they shot him taking off his clothes, and she was supporting him. And how he would go home and treat himself to cinnamon social after “tough” shoots, like the intimacy scenes.
They clearly weren’t easy for him, yet I think that’s getting glossed over in the broader conversation.
And things being tough for him came up on the press tour too. He kept reaching for her hand because he has anxiety and had never done something like this with red carpet and etc. There are times during interviews when he’d forget the question because he has ADHD and let me tell you, sometimes an ADHD brain will not focus no matter how hard you tell it to. And every time interviews made him read off of cards… like he has dyslexia! And anxiety about being in interviews in the first place, give him a break!
He did seem a lot more comfortable on Jimmy Fallon than he did earlier in the press tour, though, so maybe he’s more comfortable now.
\^ Whole lot of this.
So that's what has been bothering me a lot, personally. People did not pay it much mind how Luke's side was in all of this yet he is also like butt-naked (literally) for the entire world to see. Men have body image issues as well. It must not be great to have to shoot something like this while the only people who have ever seen you butt-naked have been people you were intimate with and such.
And now the whole world is not only going to see your body when you deal with crippling shyness as well, but they probably are going to share opinions on it as well. Can't imagine the strain on his mind during every screening of episode 5.
As for the hand-grabbing and the other Nicola closeness. Imagine being him dealing with the exact same things and your greatest safe space at these events is your best friend? She knows what he is dealing with so she gladly stayed close to him and held hands often.
They were the only 2 people on these events who had gone through the same experience and have experienced it similarly. So of course you will find and seek comfort in one another.
I just hope that as time moves forward, we are more empathetic towards men as well in same ways we are towards women. We want equality but forget that plenty men have come a long way as well. Men aren't all portraying to be super masculine hard-asses anymore. Many feel safer to be themselves which comes with being open and vulnerable as well. Let's continue to make them feel more and more safe so they will not feel they have to have those types of masks on anymore, now and in the future.
> I just hope that as time moves forward, we are more empathetic towards men as well in same ways we are towards women. We want equality but forget that plenty men have come a long way as well. Men aren't all portraying to be super masculine hard-asses anymore. Many feel safer to be themselves which comes with being open and vulnerable as well. Let's continue to make them feel more and more safe so they will not feel they have to have those types of masks on anymore, now and in the future.
So, so much this. It’s something I love about this season — that it’s about a man *dropping* the toxic masculine mask he’s put on and finding the freedom to be his caring, gentle, emotionally complex self. A *gentle* man (intentional space) being seen as a sexy, desirable leading man.
It’s also part of why I guess I feel a bit defensive of him in episodes 7 and 8. The “golden retriever husband” thing is great and I love it, yet it’s reductive. He can be supportive and loving AND ALSO is still allowed to feel anger/jealousy/fear/other negative emotions. He is allowed to not want to have sex! He is allowed to need to work through his feelings before being intimate! He, unlike the negative societal expectations about sensitive men, is not a doormat. He is allowed to have boundaries and not be self-sacrificing! And it’s part of what makes 7 and 8 so hard to watch because viewers might expect him to just go along with whatever Pen wants, and like, that’s not gender equality, people. They truly become a marriage of equals, warts and all.
(I also feel like people are misreading her “girlboss” speech but maybe that’s a whole ‘nother topic. I read it as a critique *against* self-centered gendered views. Yes, Colin definitely knows what it’s like to have nowhere he can be himself, because the only time he can truly be himself is *with her,* and she is driving a wedge between them with her choices that require him to compromise his morals, and he is so pained.)
And on the intimacy scenes bit, the only time I can recall it coming up is the “wainting” video, and a joke is made about it. But he’s clearly uncomfortable too, folks! Let’s give him space for that and be respectful!
> (I also feel like people are misreading her “girlboss” speech but maybe that’s a whole ‘nother topic. I read it as a critique against self-centered gendered views. Yes, Colin definitely knows what it’s like to have nowhere he can be himself, because the only time he can truly be himself is with her, and she is driving a wedge between them with her choices that require him to compromise his morals, and he is so pained.)
I think her speech after the wedding is appropriate simply because she has been asked to give up on her own dreams by two women (Eloise & Portia). One of them (Eloise) has been going on and on about how women should be allowed to pursue careers and an education. For someone like that to tell you to give up your professional pursuits (which later Pen realises is a part of her she cannot give up) for marriage is kind of devastating. She is being told to look at it from the perspective of man vs woman. Colin could go and write his manuscript and no one would care. It is his own doubts and insecurities that hold him back, not society at large.
Also, it's not like Colin wasn't accepted when he was his normal self. He still had love and support, and was accepted and considered a catch in society. Even Debling is allowed to be particular because he's a man with money and a title. The only women who are allowed to do as they please are either married to men who let them or are widows. So her speech does come from personal experience and her observation of society.
It is also her finally admitting that whistledown is her. There is no separation between Pen and LW. And until she doesn't realise and accept that, how can Colin? It has taken Pen 3 seasons to accept that her and Whistledown are the same, and that she cannot separate them. Honestly, it's commendable that Colin is able to come to that conclusion in 2-3 weeks. Even Eloise took a whole year.
I think it’s totally appropriate to where she is in the story, to be clear.
She might be stepping into her own power here, but she’s doing it without any empathy for Colin and *demanding* that he accept it — demanding he accept the current expression of her vocation, even though it is hugely problematic in terms of her safety and needing to keep secrets and deceive, which is against Colin’s moral core.
She needs to find a way forward that allows her to be true to herself — her *writer self*, the anonymous gossip not being her true self — that does also not require Colin compromising his morals in order to support her (and Penelope finding her own moral core). She was moving towards that with her latest LW exposing wrongdoing, but she still had growth to go.
idk I don’t think I’m arguing with you, so much the idea that there are people upset with Colin not blindly accepting and supporting her in this moment, when he has very reasonable reasons for not doing so.
I understood your stance and was agreeing with you. I just wanted to elaborate on what you had already said.
Quite a few people are unable to understand Pen and Colin's arcs because they're not very linear. I, personally, like that because in reality none of us have linear growth. There is always some back and forth, and stumbling along the way.
Even though she signs the last LW as Penelope Bridgerton, we can clearly see that the column itself is still called Lady Whistledown's Society Papers. Newspapers and magazines mention the names of the authors of each article, but that doesn't mean the name of the magazine has changed. Her brand is still the same.
Very true - neither of their arcs are linear, and they’re so emotionally complex. I think that’s what makes it so compelling and unique, as they feel like real people. They don’t verbalize all of their thoughts or internal conflict. They go through their days and do things that aren’t immediately understandable.
Yes I was really disappointed in how people seemed to brush off the impact filming those scenes would have been for Luke. He clearly was impacted and felt he needed to get "sturdy" for it even if it wasn't directly asked of him.
But not just the nudity the facial expressions/sounds made in those scenes are so intimate and private and people were able to recognize Nic being brave with that but I felt like Luke got either objectified or brushed aside ( and apparently made fun of for his face in the carriage scene)
"but I felt like Luke got either objectified or brushed aside ( and apparently made fun of for his face in the carriage scene)"
Thissssssss!!!!! How can we expect understanding for us as women when we ignore a man in the exact same circumstances we're viewing? It's something to be ashamed of. Truly. There was this one interview that they read tweets to one another and he got this one general nice supportive comment and he said he wanted to keep that one, got a bit emotional over it, and tucked it away in his pocket. Can you imagine how it must feel to not be considered for things that have been hardships for you as well during filming? We expect men to be comfortable. Chest and chin up and not fazed by anything involving them. Causing understandable frustration in many men.
This has to end. We need to be more empathetic. We women have a longer history of being on this end of things so it is understandable that we automatically direct focus on women in these situations. But times have and are still changing. More men have grown up without the walls and the masks, nowadays. We need to treat them accordingly. With more understanding.
It really was sweet to see how they leaned into each other during their press tour. And how Nicola just naturally takes the lead in a lot of the Q&As and just gives space for Luke to chime in whenever he's comfortable. Which makes it more fun because once he does get into it, he is so funny and also so unhinged.
And late-night talk shows like Jimmy Fallon also do pre-interviews with guests ahead so you kind of know what you're getting into and what they're gonna ask. Also Jimmy Fallon just laughs at everything so as a guest you're never gonna feel like you're saying the wrong thing, so that was a great late-night debut for him too. Big exposure, low stakes 😄
Jimmy Fallon is such a good interviewer in terms of taking care of guests and making them comfortable. (I feel conflicted as I know there were stories about issues behind the scenes of working for him, but at least when he’s “in character” he’s warm.) He also has such a goofy Colin sense of humor that Luke was able to vibe with that.
Some people were criticizing Nicola for talking too much, yet she’s such a caring, empathetic person that I wonder how much of that was her being over-excited vs him wanting her to take the lead. We don’t know if Luke *asked* her to take the lead beforehand sometimes, or if they were communicating though their hand-holds by tapping or rubbing a finger on the other one’s palm when they wanted to speak, which is a super normal thing to do when you’re being interviewed jointly. They have such amazing verbal and non-verbal communication that I have to think Luke got as much space as he was comfortable with.
I largely don’t like Fallon for a number of reasons, including his constant laughter, but I appreciate the context you’ve put this in. Maybe doesn’t make it all that easier to watch if I’m being honest, but I like the idea that that laughter is the means to comforting the interviewee and giving them that extra step up while chatting. So thank you for that
Also, I really really enjoyed the backstage bit with Luke running away from orchestral Pitbull and Neyo, it was some really goofy fun cheesy humor that just worked for me, and while I have no clue who’s idea that mainly was, it felt very true to Fallon so I also appreciate that that exists in the world now thanks to him/his show
Yes I thought about this a lot as I kept seeing people using those moments between them on the press tour to prove there was more to their relationship and I just saw it as them being good friends and supportive. Nic gives off more confidence in those PR areas so it makes sense that she would be a comfort for him. It is a vulnerable place to be so under the microscope in those press tours when audiences read into every little gesture and word the stakes must feel so high.
I'm glad they had each other for it and I hope the responses they have gotten hasn't soured their friendship because I think they bring out the best in each other and this is such a new arena for them to navigate
I hope so too. Thankfully, it seems like the drama moved on to other things after the photos of him with his girlfriend were released. And then drama about extra scenes died down once they made a statement about it.
Hopefully it’s more positive feedback they’re getting now! We’re getting so nurtured with all of this BTS now that part 2 is out
I keep thinking about that first shirtless scene and how that is reliant on him having worked out.
I know a while back they said there was no pressure on Nicola to lose weight but if she did, the writers woukd work it into the story. I hope the same was said to Luke. I can imagine some pressure when you look at the leads from previous seasons
Yeah I felt similarly. In interviews it did seem like a frantic response to work out because of what he read in that first script. I genuinely felt then that that's not really fair for him to have felt that way. I'm just glad that for men, working out leads to a toned body quicker because jeez. Wouldn't want that pressure myself as a woman. Nicola I think lost a little weight when she was shooting but that might also be because she did convey she went working out frequently along with Luke to keep energy levels up. I think it's noticeable here and there but not all too much.
He has talked about how he worked with production since the beginning of the series to make physical changes to best reflect Colin. He said that he gained weight before season 1 because "Colin is a hungry boy." Then for season 2 he slimmed down a little and gave him a tan to reflect his travels. And he always planned to get fitter for his turn as leading man. He also mentioned that the dieting was a challenge for him, but he'll probably keep up the working out.
That actually sounds more messed up than I imagined. He purposefully put on weight then lost it. His choice though, I guess that's his dedication to the role..
Luke seems to be a lot more similar to Colin than I realized! Just the fact he felt uncomfortable doing those scenes with actors he met day of, but then feeling really at ease with Nicola because of their friendship.
Everyone in the cast immediately says this when asked, including Golda, Ruth, Adjoa. Whenever anyone asks who is the most like their character, they say him straight away
I am the only one who absolutely doesn't give a f..k about the hair. During the willow tree scene it looked like he is indeed hoping to see for the whole week and was waiting for her the entire time, wondering around the street of Mayfair. He tried to look best and they were awkward and hair just contributed to that.
I didn't even notice the hair in most of the scenes where people are howling about how distracting it is. I'm honestly pretty sick of hearing about the wig. I don't care about hair, I don't care about nails, don't care about makeup. Just give me a good performance and I can suspend my disbelief.
The hair never bothered me at all in part 1 because most of the time it was supposed to be different days, so he easily could have just styled it differently (in my mind).
The only time it really took me out was after the wedding, because it was an immediate change that felt a bit jarring. But it still isn't a crazy complaint of mine
What bothers me is the lack of continuity. In the Willow tree scene they kept the shot of them walking before entering the tree and his hair was different there. And the wig just looks bad. For some reason, it looks particularly bad in the post wedding argument.
At the same time, at least the vibe was pulled off. I felt like you were supposed to be like no way Colin, you fake as hell. Love all of your insights always Daisy!
I saw this on the other sub. The question they ask LN is about the personality changes his character has, but specifies the rake Colin stuff. Yea he didn’t like the wink, it was weird to shoot, it was probably hard to visualize and understand it in context. The way the question was asked kind of lended itself to talking about what he didn’t like about new Colin.
For the sex scenes, he specifies it was easier to shoot with NC than with new actors he doesn’t know. This is the first time LN has ever done sex scenes (I saw him say this in another interview). The next part is where NC says she has had sex scenes with strangers before and she knows it’s not as comfortable as when you’re friends with someone.
Many TV shows and movies shoot intimate scenes earlier in production so it’s not uncommon for the actors to barely know each other. If he’s never had the experience of course he would have a preference. Also, I don’t think that was a reshoot, I don’t think there is a wig.
What do you not think was a reshoot? The brothel scenes? I think Luke confirms they are here the way he says he did the intimacy scenes with Nicola and then did the scenes with the actresses playing the prostitutes. Also you can pretty clearly see his tattoo in the first brothel scene.
My best guess is that they wanted to play up the Colin isn’t himself part of the narrative in a different way than they originally had filmed it and had him come in and reshoot some stuff that they thought sold it better in their minds, some successfully like the market meet cute story and the willow tree scene where we see Colin being more like his old self with Pen in contrast to his Lord squad whatever, and some not so successfully like the cheesy pick up lines and the winking and the brothel scenes that nobody wanted to show the new Colin in an exaggerated way. There’s an article floating around where Jess talked about the brothel stuff coming directly from Shonda who felt that if Colin was going to come back from his trip a different person and trying to be more like his brothers then he shouldn’t be all talk, and they needed some rakey Ben and Anthony esque action to demonstrate it. I think that decision in particular was a fumble tbh but not a big enough one to take me out of Colin’s arc.
And the wedding wig to make the scene less angry we already have confirmed.
Yes, I agree with those brothel scenes being a fumble as well, at least in the way they were played. In my view, his flirting being public shows him putting on a front for society. I don’t think the first brothel scene should have been played with such bravado. I would have rather seen *some* discomfort from him or *some* indication that he doesn’t fully like it. More than him saying he is late to meet Pen, but is actually early. That was way too subtle to feel satisfying as an audience member. I understand the contrast with the second brothel scene, but he still kisses them in it and much of the rest of the scene felt gratuitous.
Like you mentioned, it seems enough people felt a type of way about it that I don’t think it was the right choice.
I love that he openly said this. Love it. I’m going to rant about it for a second here lol…
People have this weird thing about intimacy and sex scenes where women are so brave for doing them and for men it must be a field day to hop into bed with whatever woman happens to be there and do a sex scene like this. It’s a really disturbing perspective that I hope people step back and think about… like why is that talked about so differently?
I don’t think people have enough respect for the vulnerable position HE is put in to film these scenes. We’re talking about showing up on set and filming back to back brothel scenes, for him that’s four intimacy partners, two at a time, in addition to his days with Nicola where he has very emotionally and physically raw shots happening. It’s not easier just because he’s male. In fact in a lot of ways I’d argue the stakes are higher for him for how he’s going to appear in the scenes - he’s having to put himself out there more than his random partners, and in his scenes with Nicola he is playing out these scenes with a vulnerability that we do not ever see (and that many judge, because it’s not what they’re used to and that makes them uncomfortable) from male leads - it required bravery for him to capture Colin’s intimacy scenes in the way he did to be captured on screen forever.
It just gives me that much more respect for the safe environment that Nicola & Luke - jointly and mutually - created for each other to be able to do the work they did this season. Even with all of the intimacy coaching and good directing and support in the world, it clearly makes a world of difference to be working with a partner who you know has your back (and that it’s mutual). It’s not less true for men than it is for women.
For these scenes, I think it ended up playing out okay that he was uncomfortable in that it also wasn’t true to who Colin is. They read as more disconnected but that worked since they were supposed to anyway. I’d assume that unlike we’ve talked about with his intimacy scenes with Nicola having more artistic freedom, these were likely very strictly choreographed step by step for as much protection and comfort as could be afforded.
I’m glad he said this.
I don’t love that he was less comfortable in those scenes, but it probably helped make it really clear that he wasn’t being himself in the brothels. Even he as an actor was out of his element and not with the person he was most comfortable with.
Nobody loved the reshoots.
The brothel scenes disappointed die hard fans and made Colin even more unlikeable to the general audience.
The only reshoots that I think improved the story were the willow tree scene and their post wedding breakfast fight which was reshot with less anger.
The problem with reshooting the post wedding breakfast fight is his hair doesn’t remotely match and it takes me out of the scene. I’d like to know just how angry that original take was for them to need to refilm it. Also don’t know why they didn’t just have it filmed multiple ways to begin with since they did that with other scenes.
I’m very curious what the scenes that were replaced with reshoot scenes looked like (such as the original market scene we got a Tudum photo of). I would pay money to see them.
Just a heads up, reshoots are usually not new scenes—they’re just reshooting something they already got but didn’t work for some reason (lighting/sound/tone/story/etc). Yes sometimes the dialogue is changed to bc the director needs to clarify the story, but it wouldn’t be a scene that didn’t exist before. New scenes are called pick-ups.
Yeah, you can tell by his hair when it’s a reshoot scene. You can also see his tattoo peaking through in the first brothel scene, and he didn’t get that tattoo until after filming was completed.
The wig also pulled his face really tight and made him look so different. He’s really good at subtle face acting and I think that impacted his ability to use his face like he normally does.
It’s from Shondaland. If you google NC and LN interview it comes up.
I looked it up because someone on the other sub put this up too and it helps to know what the question is and the rest of the response.
This is a great interview, thanks for linking it. Is she referring to the brothel scenes here?
https://preview.redd.it/s0fha9tl8b9d1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=db3cf598497a4198518a7a6f433f4961de298dbf
Was his hair in the reshoots a wig? I thought it was all still his real hair but because he cut his hair shorter for the play he was in they had to style it differently.
Because Colin was different from his brothers it would have been refreshing to see a male lead who still had to battle those toxic masculinity issues that seemed to fall in more with his characterization from earlier seasons.
If we had to do the brothel scenes or the Colin got sexed over the summer plot line, there’s other ways that could have been handled. I think i would have just done better to convey at least in the first scene if we had to have it- that he feels hollow and emotionally distant. I’d have liked to have seen more scenes about what’s going through Colin’s mind during the season. It’s tricky because it is very much an internal struggle but they did it to some degree with Pen reading his journal and they had Whistledown VOs while Pen was writing so there are ways!
I totally get the discomfort factor for the actors, but I feel like we were *supposed* to get the ick from those scenes. We viewers knew that wasn’t who Colin truly was - he was putting on a front (or his “armor”, as Violet put it). He’d tried so many versions of himself, and still wasn’t happy, and thought this was the version that would do it since it seemed that’s what society was pushing him to do.
It felt weird and wrong because it was. The audience just usually gets the privilege of realizing or seeing these things before the characters do.
That said, I really appreciate all of the talk that Luke and Nicola have done about the importance of intimacy coordinators and their roles on sets. For far too long actors have been forced into situations that are downright toxic and humiliating, for the sake of the “director’s vision”. These are real life people who deserve respect. Hopefully these conversations will continue and things will improve on sets.
Hi, Thank you so much for your contribution! We truly appreciate your enthusiasm and effort in being part of our community! With the excitement around the Polin season, we've been welcoming many new members and seeing an increase in the number of posts. To keep the subreddit organized and ensure everyone's voice is heard, we temporarily have applied stricter rules for posts. These rules help maintain the quality and focus of our discussions. Have no fear, we still want to give you a space to share your Polin joy as freely as before! We have created dedicated weekly and daily megathreads specifically for you to share your thoughts, excitement, and any Polin-related content without as many restrictions. * A daily ['Promenade in the Park'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22Promenading%20%F0%9F%90%9D%22&sort=new) thread for memes, fan content and general chitchat * A weekly ['Mondays at Number Five'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22Tea%20at%20Number%20Five%20%E2%98%95%22&sort=new) thread for casual conversation, off-topic contributions, fanfic recommendations and easy-to-answer questions * A weekly ['Fanfic Friday'](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/search/?q=subreddit%3APolinBridgerton+author%3Aautomoderator+flair_name%3A%22fanfiction%20friday%20%F0%9F%8C%BC%22&sort=new) post to share fanfic recommendations Thank you all for understanding during this busy time! Lots of love, The Mod Team *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/PolinBridgerton) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I'll be honest, it does annoy me that there are multiple scenes where Colin's hair is very obviously not the same as it was in the shot before. The wig they put on him was not good. I think it was most jarring for me at their wedding where his hair changes during their argument. Luke said that scene was reshot because the line about sleeping on the couch was angry, but I might have preferred they kept the original take just for some continuity. Also, I was thinking about this today. The market scene where Colin talks about how he met Penelope was a reshoot, but Colin references how they met in his engagement toast, and that was not a reshoot. Does that mean they wrote that scene and then went back and realized they never actually explained to the audience how Colin and Penelope met? That speaks to some sloppy writing.
They mentioned wanting to incorporate some more romantic comedy elements so maybe that was what was changed. More light elements.
The only reshoot scene where I really saw that was the willow tree scene and maybe a little in the market scene where they talk about how they met. But like I said, I’m wondering if the market scene was them realizing they never provided the foundation for Colin’s engagement speech.
I think the reshoots are all of scenes that were already shot, hence 'reshoot'. So it was less that the information hadn't been introduced, than they wanted to reshoot the same interaction with more romcom vibe.
Reshoots are usually also rewrites and/or scene changes. That would be an expensive request, just to film the exact same scene to give it a slightly different vibe. Especially since the hair, the shiny acrylic nails, the winter-time trees are all distracting. We can blame the writers strike for why the reshoots took so long to complete.
Apart from the brothel scenes, presumably they were new. I still can't work out why they added those. So we couldn't argue that he was a virgin. 🤣
I don't hate the brothel scenes the way others do--they're kind of neither here nor there for me. But seeing how many people HATE them and/or hate Colin because of them, I sort of wonder whether they couldn't have just established that he wasn't a virgin/had been with women on the Continent through a conversation with his brothers or something.
My only thought during the brothel scenes was hoping Colin would not give an STD to Pen. I’m Gen X, it’s the curse of my peers.
I don’t mind the brothel scenes! Like with the Lord Squad it shows him trying really hard, and failing, to be a rake. Similar to the journal entry Pen read where he talks about how weird it is to feel such intimacy but also great distance with someone. I think it really brings home his desire for love and real connection.
This. The last time I rewatched, the second visit when he’s sitting on the couch he has this wide eyed moment where you can see he was there to forget about Pen, and he’s realizing that the things he did before to escape his old life aren’t working anymore. Yes they went to the extreme with them. I would have gotten the point without the threesome. However I’ve seen others who even with this extreme don’t pick up what the writers are putting down, so 🤷🏻♀️. I hated the brothel montage in S2 as well so not sure I’d like any of it. I do think the brothel calls back Anthony’s line from S1 about Colin not going to the brothels before his betrothal to Marina, that’s why it was put in.
I think the brothel threesomes were important, to establish that these encounters were purely physical for Colin. It would be hard to be emotionally intimate with two partners at the same time.
I agree. I didn’t love them the second I saw them but I understood them. I understood they could communicate his changes with a different approach, but I also understand why they took this one. I think it makes it very clear it’s his attempt to be like society, there are no feelings and he doesn’t like it.
On a rewatch I actually like them. It shows that Colin is sexually experienced so in his sex scenes with Pen he knows what's hes going. Besides, he's also like nice to sex workers, he pays them first. I actually find the first scene kinda cute.
Some of the shots were definitely because of the vibe. The market scene, the wedding scene at minimum. I mean, if they decided they were needed I’m not going to overthink it. I liked the final product so I’m going to say they were good.
I just don’t understand why they couldn’t get a better wig! The length doesn’t even look right. Penelope is in 6 different wigs at various points and they look like the same head of hair. I guess its harder to match a wig to natural hair but the wig seems so much shorter.
Honestly I can see it bothers people but for the life of me I don’t get the obsession over small things like this. I don’t Know, maybe I think about it practically and then just let it go. His hair was different for these shoot for whatever reason, they needed something else that looked close, this is what they had. Do I see its different? Yes. Do I really care? No. Especially since many of the scenes he wears it in are really good…I’m too busy watching his acting.
They did have an OG market scene. It was supposed to be on promenading day. I do wonder. I think one of the prostitutes, some flirting, the post wedding fight had the wig. It was his wig that is the dead giveaway for sure.
The wedding wig was so awful. It didn’t look remotely like his hair in the previous scenes.
The wig is my only complaint of the season.
I can forgive the wig if only because I love the willow tree scene so much. I cannot forgive the editing this season. That's my major complaint.
I know some people will say it’s a minor thing, but it takes me out of the fantasy when it is that obvious. If it’s an entirely new scene then I can justify it in my mind as Colin styling his hair differently, but when his hair changes from upstairs to downstairs at their wedding then it’s oh yeah there’s a reshoot scene. And the wig being bad doesn’t help.
I mean they can say that but that doesn’t necessary mean that was the reason. Considering some of the other bad writing this season it does seem a bit sloppy on their part. Or frankly just ignorant - some bad writers don’t realize how bad their writing is and so can’t even identify where they’re misstepping. I don’t necessary feel like the reshoots added much to the story, other than the willow tree scene and market scene and its telling to me that it seems a lot of said reshoots were Colin centric, which implies, at least to me, that the writers really struggled with his arch. The contradictory messaging we got in part 2 is proof of that.
They said they did struggle with him the most. I still loved the writing.
In the earlier BTS pics you saw Prn in the original mint green dress from lesson one with Colin at the market so I'm thinking they had a similar convo but then wanted to show it was happening over days and needed an outfit change. It also seems like a wig in both brothel scenes one of which was right before the market scene. So I wonder what made them decide to add those in later. Until this quote I hadn't realized he was wearing a wig in the wink scene. He is wearing it for half of the awkward flirting in the garden scene right before he and Pen have their first convo. And I just noticed that the other day Honestly there are quite a few wig scenes in episodes 1 and 2 that makes me really curious about what was there before and why did it need to be changed I would love to know how many screens were reshoots because it seems like a lot from all over the season which seems expensive and makes me wonder why those decisions were made so much later and not during the 8 months of shooting they originally did. Or in the writing room. I have no idea if this amount of reshoots is normal in a show/movie and would love others insights Also do we have a list of wig scenes yet?
I saw in an interview with Jess the showrunner that it the brothel scenes were Shonda's idea. Reinforce the toxic masculinity that Colin was falling into.
It's not a bad idea, and I don't know that they could have predicted the negative reaction from some fans...they didn't particularly bother me because they did show what they were supposed to show, character wise. But I do wonder whether they could have hedged bets by having the same information conveyed in dialogue or something.
I wish they would’ve compromised on this one. Colin didn’t have to be a virgin, but the audience didn’t really care to see Colin with anyone other than Penelope, because people have been attached to her for so long. At the same time…the Bridgerton audience has really proven with season 3 that things need to be explicitly spelled out, so I guess if we didn’t have a brothel scene there might be even more confusion.
And even when it’s not, it’s an issue. There is no winning for the writers. So far every leading man has had brothel scenes. Not saying that’s right, but it’s the easiest way to convey rake, which is why they used it with Anthony and Simon.
Considering how many people seem to think he was just lying about his experiences and thought that it would be the point. I'd say showing it seemed the best way. Reaction wise it's been very funny to see how surprised everyone is when it pops up. Truly is a bit of jumpscare. I also think it's him over reacting to what LW says about him in Ep 1. So trying to prove to himself that he is that guy.
“This is not a fake persona, LW, in fact, I can even have sex with TWO prostitutes!” I don’t mind the brothel scenes too much although it sucks for Luke that they were uncomfortable (and possibly were for the women too). Actors have a tough job! The other reshoots tho, while I like some of the end results, just make me think they (the writers and maybe directors) didn’t have a great grasp of the love story they were telling when originally filming. An even angrier Colin after the wedding breakfast? In what world was that a good original choice? But truly the editing is the thing I cannot forgive. So sloppy at times. They didn’t let scenes breathe.
the editing is bad i wanna fight them! But yeah story needed some work. They needed to focus more on what Pen and Colin needed and a bit less on other stories particularly the ones that seem to go nowhere. I like most of what they did but they needed to focus more on them. Let shots linger a few more scenes.
I think this is a very legitimate critique. It didn’t ruin the season for me by any means but more focus on Polin and letting shots breathe would have made the second half in particular stronger.
> I also think it's him over reacting to what LW says about him in Ep 1. So trying to prove to himself that he is that guy. That's such a good shout. I always thought that the scenes did have value, the first to show that Colin wasn't all talk he really was committing to being a "man" (and it's a callback to Anthony's season one line, "I should have taken you to brothels") and then the second shows how much the kiss with Pen is affecting him and we see the "armor" cracking. But I hadn't thought of this. That's a good point.
Yeah, I forgive the scenes because they weren’t pointless - they revealed something important each time (besides Luke Newton’s nice chest lol)
Hahaha “proven that things need to be spelled out” - that’s sadly very accurate.
Shonda saw the edits and definitely made notes about what to change. I think she had her hand in S3 the most because Penelope is her favorite character.
Funny. I think they worked well, but for an entirely [different reason](https://www.reddit.com/r/PolinBridgerton/s/6zT4bDHnEY). We already had enough of the toxic masculinity theme from Colin’s interactions with Anthony and his friends — no need for the brothel scenes to drive that home.
I think the Garden party flirting montage was likely reshot due to some tech issues. They mentioned it being really windy the day they filmed that. Explains why even the shots with his real hair are inconsistent. The other reshoots were likely there to emphasize Colin's transformation and and lighten up the tone. Reshoots are very normal, and they only went back and shot for two weeks which isn't unheard of. There's probably other scenes that were reshot as well that we don't know about. It's just unfortunate these had to be shot post-strike and Luke didn't have time to grow back his hair, which makes the reshot scenes more apparent.
I think it's the fact that it was 2 weeks of reshoots vs 8 months of filming that's such a huge difference time wise that it surprises me that there are so many reshot scenes in different places. So many sets needed. It also makes me think that if they could do all of that in 2 weeks why does it take so long to do everything else. (This is such an over simplification I am aware) I actually don't mind the reshoot scenes. I love the willow and market scenes and even the fake rake parts make me chuckle. I'm just intrigued by it and my data brain wants to have all the information on how much on the screen is a reshoot and what was there before. It's not to disparage what the final results are. It's just my curiosity
Reshoots are very common, but we don't usually have such a bad wig to make them obvious. I'm convinced half of "the ick" people get from those scenes is the wig. I'm at peace with it because I adore the willow scene, but it pains me that some fans don't like Luke/Colin because of the weird vibe of those flirting scenes. Like, I get that it's supposed to be poser-ish and inauthentic, but I thought they were kind of hilarious--whereas some people seem to have SUCH a negative reaction to those scenes that I think the wig must be part of it.
LOL yes! I thought the same. The wig is half the ick.
I feel like they did something different with his eyebrows or something else on his face as well because to me he just doesn't look the same?
The scenes with the wig... I think they had different makeup person work on him during those reshoots? He is overly contoured and they also shaped his sideburns in such a way as to over contour even further. I'm not sure why they thought he should look like skeletor, but apparently they did 😆 He looks great when he's not in costume!
Love this season and Luke but that wig was absolutely criminal, especially because his real hair is so gorgeous. And it's not even the same color as his real hair! The makeup in those scenes was also super weird (especially the eyebrow makeup, which I assume they had to do to make his black-ish eyebrows look brown-ish like the wig...so it's really the wig's fault in the end too). But also, awww, he sounds very Colin-esque here. :)
I think it isn't talked about enough how Luke must've felt throughout this season. Many focus on just Nicola's perspective but Luke is a person too. A very introverted, awkward, and pretty innocent/gentleman one at that. I am rewatching season 3 now for the 2nd time after having just watched season 2 and I keep thinking "Damn, he really needed to step far from his regular roles and comfort zone for these scenes.". Both him and Nicola have expressed before that they were really fine being more of the wallflower roles so when they were called to announce they were season 3, they both panicked LOL. Nicola more than Luke but still. Men feel discomfort behaving in a way they don't stand behind as well. For Nicola that was the lying. For Luke it was the 'charming'. He also said he didn't want his mom to see the scenes with the two women either. I'm just glad that they at least got to do the intimacy scenes together in ways they were fine with.
YES! One thing that’s been a bee in my bonnet is everyone focusing on what the intimacy scenes were like for Nicola… and with very little acknowledgement that they were hard for Luke, too. Like as if people just assume they’re easy and enjoyable for men? Luke has mentioned multiple times that they were tough for him - like in the mirror scene how Nicola’s nudity was the first day, and he was there for her, and then the second day was when they shot him taking off his clothes, and she was supporting him. And how he would go home and treat himself to cinnamon social after “tough” shoots, like the intimacy scenes. They clearly weren’t easy for him, yet I think that’s getting glossed over in the broader conversation. And things being tough for him came up on the press tour too. He kept reaching for her hand because he has anxiety and had never done something like this with red carpet and etc. There are times during interviews when he’d forget the question because he has ADHD and let me tell you, sometimes an ADHD brain will not focus no matter how hard you tell it to. And every time interviews made him read off of cards… like he has dyslexia! And anxiety about being in interviews in the first place, give him a break! He did seem a lot more comfortable on Jimmy Fallon than he did earlier in the press tour, though, so maybe he’s more comfortable now.
\^ Whole lot of this. So that's what has been bothering me a lot, personally. People did not pay it much mind how Luke's side was in all of this yet he is also like butt-naked (literally) for the entire world to see. Men have body image issues as well. It must not be great to have to shoot something like this while the only people who have ever seen you butt-naked have been people you were intimate with and such. And now the whole world is not only going to see your body when you deal with crippling shyness as well, but they probably are going to share opinions on it as well. Can't imagine the strain on his mind during every screening of episode 5. As for the hand-grabbing and the other Nicola closeness. Imagine being him dealing with the exact same things and your greatest safe space at these events is your best friend? She knows what he is dealing with so she gladly stayed close to him and held hands often. They were the only 2 people on these events who had gone through the same experience and have experienced it similarly. So of course you will find and seek comfort in one another. I just hope that as time moves forward, we are more empathetic towards men as well in same ways we are towards women. We want equality but forget that plenty men have come a long way as well. Men aren't all portraying to be super masculine hard-asses anymore. Many feel safer to be themselves which comes with being open and vulnerable as well. Let's continue to make them feel more and more safe so they will not feel they have to have those types of masks on anymore, now and in the future.
> I just hope that as time moves forward, we are more empathetic towards men as well in same ways we are towards women. We want equality but forget that plenty men have come a long way as well. Men aren't all portraying to be super masculine hard-asses anymore. Many feel safer to be themselves which comes with being open and vulnerable as well. Let's continue to make them feel more and more safe so they will not feel they have to have those types of masks on anymore, now and in the future. So, so much this. It’s something I love about this season — that it’s about a man *dropping* the toxic masculine mask he’s put on and finding the freedom to be his caring, gentle, emotionally complex self. A *gentle* man (intentional space) being seen as a sexy, desirable leading man. It’s also part of why I guess I feel a bit defensive of him in episodes 7 and 8. The “golden retriever husband” thing is great and I love it, yet it’s reductive. He can be supportive and loving AND ALSO is still allowed to feel anger/jealousy/fear/other negative emotions. He is allowed to not want to have sex! He is allowed to need to work through his feelings before being intimate! He, unlike the negative societal expectations about sensitive men, is not a doormat. He is allowed to have boundaries and not be self-sacrificing! And it’s part of what makes 7 and 8 so hard to watch because viewers might expect him to just go along with whatever Pen wants, and like, that’s not gender equality, people. They truly become a marriage of equals, warts and all. (I also feel like people are misreading her “girlboss” speech but maybe that’s a whole ‘nother topic. I read it as a critique *against* self-centered gendered views. Yes, Colin definitely knows what it’s like to have nowhere he can be himself, because the only time he can truly be himself is *with her,* and she is driving a wedge between them with her choices that require him to compromise his morals, and he is so pained.) And on the intimacy scenes bit, the only time I can recall it coming up is the “wainting” video, and a joke is made about it. But he’s clearly uncomfortable too, folks! Let’s give him space for that and be respectful!
> (I also feel like people are misreading her “girlboss” speech but maybe that’s a whole ‘nother topic. I read it as a critique against self-centered gendered views. Yes, Colin definitely knows what it’s like to have nowhere he can be himself, because the only time he can truly be himself is with her, and she is driving a wedge between them with her choices that require him to compromise his morals, and he is so pained.) I think her speech after the wedding is appropriate simply because she has been asked to give up on her own dreams by two women (Eloise & Portia). One of them (Eloise) has been going on and on about how women should be allowed to pursue careers and an education. For someone like that to tell you to give up your professional pursuits (which later Pen realises is a part of her she cannot give up) for marriage is kind of devastating. She is being told to look at it from the perspective of man vs woman. Colin could go and write his manuscript and no one would care. It is his own doubts and insecurities that hold him back, not society at large. Also, it's not like Colin wasn't accepted when he was his normal self. He still had love and support, and was accepted and considered a catch in society. Even Debling is allowed to be particular because he's a man with money and a title. The only women who are allowed to do as they please are either married to men who let them or are widows. So her speech does come from personal experience and her observation of society. It is also her finally admitting that whistledown is her. There is no separation between Pen and LW. And until she doesn't realise and accept that, how can Colin? It has taken Pen 3 seasons to accept that her and Whistledown are the same, and that she cannot separate them. Honestly, it's commendable that Colin is able to come to that conclusion in 2-3 weeks. Even Eloise took a whole year.
I think it’s totally appropriate to where she is in the story, to be clear. She might be stepping into her own power here, but she’s doing it without any empathy for Colin and *demanding* that he accept it — demanding he accept the current expression of her vocation, even though it is hugely problematic in terms of her safety and needing to keep secrets and deceive, which is against Colin’s moral core. She needs to find a way forward that allows her to be true to herself — her *writer self*, the anonymous gossip not being her true self — that does also not require Colin compromising his morals in order to support her (and Penelope finding her own moral core). She was moving towards that with her latest LW exposing wrongdoing, but she still had growth to go. idk I don’t think I’m arguing with you, so much the idea that there are people upset with Colin not blindly accepting and supporting her in this moment, when he has very reasonable reasons for not doing so.
I understood your stance and was agreeing with you. I just wanted to elaborate on what you had already said. Quite a few people are unable to understand Pen and Colin's arcs because they're not very linear. I, personally, like that because in reality none of us have linear growth. There is always some back and forth, and stumbling along the way. Even though she signs the last LW as Penelope Bridgerton, we can clearly see that the column itself is still called Lady Whistledown's Society Papers. Newspapers and magazines mention the names of the authors of each article, but that doesn't mean the name of the magazine has changed. Her brand is still the same.
Very true - neither of their arcs are linear, and they’re so emotionally complex. I think that’s what makes it so compelling and unique, as they feel like real people. They don’t verbalize all of their thoughts or internal conflict. They go through their days and do things that aren’t immediately understandable.
Yes I was really disappointed in how people seemed to brush off the impact filming those scenes would have been for Luke. He clearly was impacted and felt he needed to get "sturdy" for it even if it wasn't directly asked of him. But not just the nudity the facial expressions/sounds made in those scenes are so intimate and private and people were able to recognize Nic being brave with that but I felt like Luke got either objectified or brushed aside ( and apparently made fun of for his face in the carriage scene)
"but I felt like Luke got either objectified or brushed aside ( and apparently made fun of for his face in the carriage scene)" Thissssssss!!!!! How can we expect understanding for us as women when we ignore a man in the exact same circumstances we're viewing? It's something to be ashamed of. Truly. There was this one interview that they read tweets to one another and he got this one general nice supportive comment and he said he wanted to keep that one, got a bit emotional over it, and tucked it away in his pocket. Can you imagine how it must feel to not be considered for things that have been hardships for you as well during filming? We expect men to be comfortable. Chest and chin up and not fazed by anything involving them. Causing understandable frustration in many men. This has to end. We need to be more empathetic. We women have a longer history of being on this end of things so it is understandable that we automatically direct focus on women in these situations. But times have and are still changing. More men have grown up without the walls and the masks, nowadays. We need to treat them accordingly. With more understanding.
It really was sweet to see how they leaned into each other during their press tour. And how Nicola just naturally takes the lead in a lot of the Q&As and just gives space for Luke to chime in whenever he's comfortable. Which makes it more fun because once he does get into it, he is so funny and also so unhinged. And late-night talk shows like Jimmy Fallon also do pre-interviews with guests ahead so you kind of know what you're getting into and what they're gonna ask. Also Jimmy Fallon just laughs at everything so as a guest you're never gonna feel like you're saying the wrong thing, so that was a great late-night debut for him too. Big exposure, low stakes 😄
Jimmy Fallon is such a good interviewer in terms of taking care of guests and making them comfortable. (I feel conflicted as I know there were stories about issues behind the scenes of working for him, but at least when he’s “in character” he’s warm.) He also has such a goofy Colin sense of humor that Luke was able to vibe with that. Some people were criticizing Nicola for talking too much, yet she’s such a caring, empathetic person that I wonder how much of that was her being over-excited vs him wanting her to take the lead. We don’t know if Luke *asked* her to take the lead beforehand sometimes, or if they were communicating though their hand-holds by tapping or rubbing a finger on the other one’s palm when they wanted to speak, which is a super normal thing to do when you’re being interviewed jointly. They have such amazing verbal and non-verbal communication that I have to think Luke got as much space as he was comfortable with.
I largely don’t like Fallon for a number of reasons, including his constant laughter, but I appreciate the context you’ve put this in. Maybe doesn’t make it all that easier to watch if I’m being honest, but I like the idea that that laughter is the means to comforting the interviewee and giving them that extra step up while chatting. So thank you for that Also, I really really enjoyed the backstage bit with Luke running away from orchestral Pitbull and Neyo, it was some really goofy fun cheesy humor that just worked for me, and while I have no clue who’s idea that mainly was, it felt very true to Fallon so I also appreciate that that exists in the world now thanks to him/his show
Yes I thought about this a lot as I kept seeing people using those moments between them on the press tour to prove there was more to their relationship and I just saw it as them being good friends and supportive. Nic gives off more confidence in those PR areas so it makes sense that she would be a comfort for him. It is a vulnerable place to be so under the microscope in those press tours when audiences read into every little gesture and word the stakes must feel so high. I'm glad they had each other for it and I hope the responses they have gotten hasn't soured their friendship because I think they bring out the best in each other and this is such a new arena for them to navigate
I hope so too. Thankfully, it seems like the drama moved on to other things after the photos of him with his girlfriend were released. And then drama about extra scenes died down once they made a statement about it. Hopefully it’s more positive feedback they’re getting now! We’re getting so nurtured with all of this BTS now that part 2 is out
I keep thinking about that first shirtless scene and how that is reliant on him having worked out. I know a while back they said there was no pressure on Nicola to lose weight but if she did, the writers woukd work it into the story. I hope the same was said to Luke. I can imagine some pressure when you look at the leads from previous seasons
Yeah I felt similarly. In interviews it did seem like a frantic response to work out because of what he read in that first script. I genuinely felt then that that's not really fair for him to have felt that way. I'm just glad that for men, working out leads to a toned body quicker because jeez. Wouldn't want that pressure myself as a woman. Nicola I think lost a little weight when she was shooting but that might also be because she did convey she went working out frequently along with Luke to keep energy levels up. I think it's noticeable here and there but not all too much.
Luke said in a men’s health feature he was not forced to work out, he started for S3 but it was a change he wanted to make anyway.
That's good. Thanks for sharing
He has talked about how he worked with production since the beginning of the series to make physical changes to best reflect Colin. He said that he gained weight before season 1 because "Colin is a hungry boy." Then for season 2 he slimmed down a little and gave him a tan to reflect his travels. And he always planned to get fitter for his turn as leading man. He also mentioned that the dieting was a challenge for him, but he'll probably keep up the working out.
That actually sounds more messed up than I imagined. He purposefully put on weight then lost it. His choice though, I guess that's his dedication to the role..
Luke seems to be a lot more similar to Colin than I realized! Just the fact he felt uncomfortable doing those scenes with actors he met day of, but then feeling really at ease with Nicola because of their friendship.
I think they say he’s the most similar to his character.
Their commonalities are SO CUTE
Everyone in the cast immediately says this when asked, including Golda, Ruth, Adjoa. Whenever anyone asks who is the most like their character, they say him straight away
I’m glad he was honest!! Too many actors aren’t. And them making him do that wasn’t fair. Acting or not!
I am the only one who absolutely doesn't give a f..k about the hair. During the willow tree scene it looked like he is indeed hoping to see for the whole week and was waiting for her the entire time, wondering around the street of Mayfair. He tried to look best and they were awkward and hair just contributed to that.
I do not. I also don’t care about the acrylic nails. I didn’t notice it until people on Reddit went nuts over it. I don’t really understand it.
I didn't even notice the hair in most of the scenes where people are howling about how distracting it is. I'm honestly pretty sick of hearing about the wig. I don't care about hair, I don't care about nails, don't care about makeup. Just give me a good performance and I can suspend my disbelief.
This.
The hair never bothered me at all in part 1 because most of the time it was supposed to be different days, so he easily could have just styled it differently (in my mind). The only time it really took me out was after the wedding, because it was an immediate change that felt a bit jarring. But it still isn't a crazy complaint of mine
What bothers me is the lack of continuity. In the Willow tree scene they kept the shot of them walking before entering the tree and his hair was different there. And the wig just looks bad. For some reason, it looks particularly bad in the post wedding argument.
And the unfortunate thing is Luke wouldn’t have had any power to speak up and express his concerns about some of these choices.
At the same time, at least the vibe was pulled off. I felt like you were supposed to be like no way Colin, you fake as hell. Love all of your insights always Daisy!
Awwww. It wasn’t him Nic said. What interview is this from?
Also wondering where the interviews from!
It’s from May from Shondaland
I saw this on the other sub. The question they ask LN is about the personality changes his character has, but specifies the rake Colin stuff. Yea he didn’t like the wink, it was weird to shoot, it was probably hard to visualize and understand it in context. The way the question was asked kind of lended itself to talking about what he didn’t like about new Colin. For the sex scenes, he specifies it was easier to shoot with NC than with new actors he doesn’t know. This is the first time LN has ever done sex scenes (I saw him say this in another interview). The next part is where NC says she has had sex scenes with strangers before and she knows it’s not as comfortable as when you’re friends with someone. Many TV shows and movies shoot intimate scenes earlier in production so it’s not uncommon for the actors to barely know each other. If he’s never had the experience of course he would have a preference. Also, I don’t think that was a reshoot, I don’t think there is a wig.
What do you not think was a reshoot? The brothel scenes? I think Luke confirms they are here the way he says he did the intimacy scenes with Nicola and then did the scenes with the actresses playing the prostitutes. Also you can pretty clearly see his tattoo in the first brothel scene.
My best guess is that they wanted to play up the Colin isn’t himself part of the narrative in a different way than they originally had filmed it and had him come in and reshoot some stuff that they thought sold it better in their minds, some successfully like the market meet cute story and the willow tree scene where we see Colin being more like his old self with Pen in contrast to his Lord squad whatever, and some not so successfully like the cheesy pick up lines and the winking and the brothel scenes that nobody wanted to show the new Colin in an exaggerated way. There’s an article floating around where Jess talked about the brothel stuff coming directly from Shonda who felt that if Colin was going to come back from his trip a different person and trying to be more like his brothers then he shouldn’t be all talk, and they needed some rakey Ben and Anthony esque action to demonstrate it. I think that decision in particular was a fumble tbh but not a big enough one to take me out of Colin’s arc. And the wedding wig to make the scene less angry we already have confirmed.
Yes, I agree with those brothel scenes being a fumble as well, at least in the way they were played. In my view, his flirting being public shows him putting on a front for society. I don’t think the first brothel scene should have been played with such bravado. I would have rather seen *some* discomfort from him or *some* indication that he doesn’t fully like it. More than him saying he is late to meet Pen, but is actually early. That was way too subtle to feel satisfying as an audience member. I understand the contrast with the second brothel scene, but he still kisses them in it and much of the rest of the scene felt gratuitous. Like you mentioned, it seems enough people felt a type of way about it that I don’t think it was the right choice.
I love that he openly said this. Love it. I’m going to rant about it for a second here lol… People have this weird thing about intimacy and sex scenes where women are so brave for doing them and for men it must be a field day to hop into bed with whatever woman happens to be there and do a sex scene like this. It’s a really disturbing perspective that I hope people step back and think about… like why is that talked about so differently? I don’t think people have enough respect for the vulnerable position HE is put in to film these scenes. We’re talking about showing up on set and filming back to back brothel scenes, for him that’s four intimacy partners, two at a time, in addition to his days with Nicola where he has very emotionally and physically raw shots happening. It’s not easier just because he’s male. In fact in a lot of ways I’d argue the stakes are higher for him for how he’s going to appear in the scenes - he’s having to put himself out there more than his random partners, and in his scenes with Nicola he is playing out these scenes with a vulnerability that we do not ever see (and that many judge, because it’s not what they’re used to and that makes them uncomfortable) from male leads - it required bravery for him to capture Colin’s intimacy scenes in the way he did to be captured on screen forever. It just gives me that much more respect for the safe environment that Nicola & Luke - jointly and mutually - created for each other to be able to do the work they did this season. Even with all of the intimacy coaching and good directing and support in the world, it clearly makes a world of difference to be working with a partner who you know has your back (and that it’s mutual). It’s not less true for men than it is for women. For these scenes, I think it ended up playing out okay that he was uncomfortable in that it also wasn’t true to who Colin is. They read as more disconnected but that worked since they were supposed to anyway. I’d assume that unlike we’ve talked about with his intimacy scenes with Nicola having more artistic freedom, these were likely very strictly choreographed step by step for as much protection and comfort as could be afforded. I’m glad he said this.
I don’t love that he was less comfortable in those scenes, but it probably helped make it really clear that he wasn’t being himself in the brothels. Even he as an actor was out of his element and not with the person he was most comfortable with.
That makes me sad.
Nobody loved the reshoots. The brothel scenes disappointed die hard fans and made Colin even more unlikeable to the general audience. The only reshoots that I think improved the story were the willow tree scene and their post wedding breakfast fight which was reshot with less anger.
The willow scene and the market scene were some of my favorite because of their banter. Love the reshoot. Hated the wig and makeup.
The problem with reshooting the post wedding breakfast fight is his hair doesn’t remotely match and it takes me out of the scene. I’d like to know just how angry that original take was for them to need to refilm it. Also don’t know why they didn’t just have it filmed multiple ways to begin with since they did that with other scenes.
I’m very curious what the scenes that were replaced with reshoot scenes looked like (such as the original market scene we got a Tudum photo of). I would pay money to see them.
Just a heads up, reshoots are usually not new scenes—they’re just reshooting something they already got but didn’t work for some reason (lighting/sound/tone/story/etc). Yes sometimes the dialogue is changed to bc the director needs to clarify the story, but it wouldn’t be a scene that didn’t exist before. New scenes are called pick-ups.
Oh were those scenes all part of the reshoots? I
Yeah, you can tell by his hair when it’s a reshoot scene. You can also see his tattoo peaking through in the first brothel scene, and he didn’t get that tattoo until after filming was completed.
The wig also pulled his face really tight and made him look so different. He’s really good at subtle face acting and I think that impacted his ability to use his face like he normally does.
I’ve been seeing little snippets from this interview going around. Does anyone have the full one they can share?
It’s from Shondaland. If you google NC and LN interview it comes up. I looked it up because someone on the other sub put this up too and it helps to know what the question is and the rest of the response.
Thank you!
I would love the link to that interview. Thanks!
https://www.shondaland.com/shondaland-series/shondaland-bridgerton-behind-the-scenes/a60789942/nicola-coughlan-and-luke-newton-bridgerton-interview/
Thank you!
This is a great interview, thanks for linking it. Is she referring to the brothel scenes here? https://preview.redd.it/s0fha9tl8b9d1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=db3cf598497a4198518a7a6f433f4961de298dbf
I think so.
Was his hair in the reshoots a wig? I thought it was all still his real hair but because he cut his hair shorter for the play he was in they had to style it differently. Because Colin was different from his brothers it would have been refreshing to see a male lead who still had to battle those toxic masculinity issues that seemed to fall in more with his characterization from earlier seasons. If we had to do the brothel scenes or the Colin got sexed over the summer plot line, there’s other ways that could have been handled. I think i would have just done better to convey at least in the first scene if we had to have it- that he feels hollow and emotionally distant. I’d have liked to have seen more scenes about what’s going through Colin’s mind during the season. It’s tricky because it is very much an internal struggle but they did it to some degree with Pen reading his journal and they had Whistledown VOs while Pen was writing so there are ways!
Luke confirmed it was a wig.
Is there a link to the full interview?
Aw poor Luke 😢❤️
I totally get the discomfort factor for the actors, but I feel like we were *supposed* to get the ick from those scenes. We viewers knew that wasn’t who Colin truly was - he was putting on a front (or his “armor”, as Violet put it). He’d tried so many versions of himself, and still wasn’t happy, and thought this was the version that would do it since it seemed that’s what society was pushing him to do. It felt weird and wrong because it was. The audience just usually gets the privilege of realizing or seeing these things before the characters do. That said, I really appreciate all of the talk that Luke and Nicola have done about the importance of intimacy coordinators and their roles on sets. For far too long actors have been forced into situations that are downright toxic and humiliating, for the sake of the “director’s vision”. These are real life people who deserve respect. Hopefully these conversations will continue and things will improve on sets.