With the first four episodes of Bridgerton season four finally landing on Netflix, we’re getting a much closer look at Francesca Bridgerton, and many are once again asking the same question: Why was Ruby Stokes recast?
Season four puts Francesca firmly in the spotlight. Alongside Benedict’s Cinderella-style romance with Sophie Baek, the show also follows Francesca (now played by Hannah Dodd) and her husband John Stirling as they struggle to conceive after nearly a year of marriage. We also learn that Francesca has been having difficulty reaching orgasm during sex with John.
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Longtime watchers will remember that Francesca was originally played by Ruby Stokes in seasons one and two.
Netflix confirmed in May 2022 that Stokes would not be returning to the role, with Hannah Dodd stepping in instead. While Dodd has been widely praised in the expanded role, people have remained curious about why Stokes didn’t continue.
The reason is actually very similar to Regé-Jean Page’s exit after season one: Scheduling conflicts and career opportunities.
In March 2022, the same month Bridgerton season two premiered, it was announced that Ruby Stokes had landed the lead role of Lucy Carlyle in Netflix’s adaptation of Lockwood & Co. According to Bridgerton creator Chris Van Dusen, Francesca was meant to have a much bigger presence in season two, but Stokes’ prior commitment meant she had to leave midway through filming.
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“I love Francesca, but we lost her midway through season 2,” Van Dusen told TVLine. “After exhausting all other options, she unfortunately had to come out due to reasons beyond our control.”
Stokes ultimately appeared in just three episodes of season two before exiting the series.
Lockwood & Co., based on Jonathan Stroud’s bestselling supernatural novels, premiered in January 2023 and was initially a major success. The show earned a 92 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and reached number one on Netflix in 18 countries. Despite this, Netflix cancelled the series after just one season in May 2023.
Even so, Stokes has always spoken warmly about her time on Bridgerton. Reflecting on her departure, she told Variety: “It wasn’t an easy decision. But it was incredible being part of a cultural moment like Bridgerton.”
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She added: “Every lesson I learned on Bridgerton was so valuable, and it propelled me, and allowed me to go on and take on a lead role on another show.”
Meanwhile, Hannah Dodd has spoken openly about how daunting it was to step into such a beloved role. A self-confessed fan of the show, she told PEOPLE she was “really nervous” about joining the cast, but said her co-stars immediately put her at ease.
“I was having banter with them in the green room on my first day, and now I can’t imagine not knowing any of them,” she said. “It’s the weirdest idea that I wouldn’t know them.”
After smaller roles in Anatomy of a Scandal and Eternals, Dodd said finding out she’d been cast as Francesca was “the best feeling ever”.
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Featured image credit: Netflix
