BRIDGERTON (L to R) REG-JEAN PAGE as SIMON BASSET and PHOEBE DYNEVOR as DAPHNE BRIDGERTON in episode 102 of BRIDGERTON Cr. LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX © 2020
Netflix Regency drama: Will Simon Basset be recast in Bridgerton?
Bridgerton fans have burned for breakout star Regé-Jean Page since his roguish portrayal of the dashing duke, Simon Bassett. He absolutely charmed us and we’re so lucky to have had such a talented actor bring the character to life!
Daphne and Simon were made for each other, and got the happy ending they both deserved by the end of the first season. The Netflix Regency-era drama is based on the eight-book series by author Julia Quinn. Each novel is centered around one of the eight Bridgerton siblings and their journeys to find their perfect love match.
As we all know, the first season followed the first book to tell the story of the beautiful Daphne Bridgerton and her fake suitor-turned husband Simon. Then, the second season focused on stubborn Anthony Bridgerton and his equally headstrong lady love, Kate Sharma.
The viscount and viscountess will be coming back for Bridgerton season 3 (yay!), where we get Colin Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington’s love story. Page did not reprise his role in the show’s sophomore season, and it seems like he won’t be coming back in the upcoming third season either.
Will Simon Basset be recast in Bridgerton?
Honestly, there’s no other actor who could play the charming duke. Page has made it clear multiple times that he’s just not interested in returning, even if it is for a simple guest role like his co-star Phoebe Dynevor. He’s made his decision and we need to respect that. He’s moved on to take on other roles, and we’re so happy for him!
So would the series recast Simon because of this? It is a possibility. Page himself didn’t have any qualms with the idea. The actor recently spoke with Variety and when asked what he thought about the historical drama recasting his role, he said “they’re free to do as they like.”
At the end of season 1, he the actor said he and executive producer Shonda Rhimes were both happy with the conclusion of the story and that they “stuck that landing.” I definitely agree!
Now just because the actor said he’d be ok with production recasting Simon, that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. Of course the team could decide to go this route. But I really don’t think they will. Page has become iconic and associated with the role. It wouldn’t be an easy one to recast.
It was very easy for the Bridgerton team to throw in some quick lines about where the duke was. It worked in the second season, I don’t know see why it would be an issue going forward. We’re lucky Simone Ashley and Jonathan Bailey are reprising their roles as Kate and Anthony, but at the same time their story wasn’t fully wrapped up the way Daphne and Simon’s was. So this makes more sense.
Though it would be nice if Page could just pop in for a scene or two. But it seems like the actor has put Simon Basset behind him, so maybe us fans should do so as well. Right now, we can see the lovely actor in Netflix’s The Gray Man, where he plays bad guy Denny Carmichael.
Bridgerton seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Netflix.
