“Drama, yes,” Nicola Coughlan promises backstage at Bridgerton’s FYSEE event in Los Angeles, her eyes wide with possibility. Coughlan is no stranger to theatrics. The Irish actor plays Penelope Featherington, the supposed ballroom wallflower of the Bridgerton world — who is actually hiding her secret identity as cutting gossip queen Lady Whistledown. 

The next season of the Regency fantasy promises a whole new host of twists for Penelope, as she will step into the spotlight as Season 3’s romantic heroine alongside her love interest Colin Bridgerton, played by Luke Newton. Coughlan and Newton agree their characters have a lot of turmoil to deal with following the events of Season 2 — and they can’t wait to take the plunge. 

In the closing moments of the Season 2 finale, Penelope overhears Colin telling a group of fellow high society men that he “would never dream of courting Penelope Featherington.” This is a particularly devastating jab for Penelope since Colin has just revealed her cousin Jack (Rupert Young) as a con man, effectively saving her family from ruin. For Penelope, the move is the height of romance from her longtime unrequited crush — until she hears his very public rejection. These events are a heightened version of a similar plot in Julia Quinn’s third Bridgerton book, An Offer from a Gentleman. Only in the novel, Colin spurns Penelope while speaking to his two older brothers, not an entire party of cackling partygoers. 

“I actually felt like it was a very important part of their story as a unit. Because she really had him on such an insane pedestal,” Coughlan says. “She thinks he’s infallible. He’s not. It was very important for him to have this fall from grace with her so that then she can finally see herself [in comparison] as just a worthy human in general.” 

For his part, Newton always knew the scene would be “hard” to pull off, since viewers are rooting for Penelope (and, by extension, the #Polin ship). “I remember reading that scene and going, ‘Uh, I’ve got to say that? That’s really savage,’” he admits. The 29-year-old felt similarly during an earlier Season 2 moment, when Colin obliviously tells Penelope she “does not count” in his new aim to swear off women. “I remember thinking, ‘God, that’s really brutal,’” Newton says.  

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Still, both Coughlan and Newton agree Colin didn’t intend to hurt Penelope’s feelings with his finale behavior — which is why his betrayal will have a massive impact on Season 3. “He’s really high on emotion and adrenaline from unveiling the scandal. He’s obviously been at a party. There’s been alcohol involved. He was just high on life,” Newton says. Coughlan concurs, saying Colin sees Penelope as “his younger sister’s friend” and doesn’t have romance on “the radar” just yet. “So when he says what he says, he’s not necessarily saying, ‘She’s awful. I would never.’ He’s just going, ‘I don’t see her that way,’” she explains. “I don’t think he’s a vindictive person. I’m sure he will know at some point that she knows what he said, and I think it will kill him.” That doesn’t mean Colin’s totally off the hook, though. 

“I’m interested to see where we find her when the season opens and how her relationship with Colin has shifted in a massive way,” Coughlan continues. “When someone says something like that about you, loudly, and humiliates you, it’s going to have such an effect.” Newton is also looking forward to seeing Colin and Penelope resolve this issue in Season 3, whether it be “in a massive row” or “a really heartfelt moment.” 

Complicating the matter even more is the fact that Colin’s little sister, Eloise (Claudia Jessie), learns Penelope’s Whistledown-sized secret in the Season 2 finale, leading to a catastrophic best friend breakup. “There’s two love stories going on for Penelope, really, in [Season 3], so I’m so interested to see how that progresses,” Coughlan teases, recognizing the #Peneloise friendship as her character’s other great love. “Penelope has so much deep internal maturing to do.”

Newton wonders how Penelope’s two Bridgerton-related crises will bleed into her work as Lady Whistledown. “There’s no loyalty to the Bridgertons now at all. As much as there’s been a lot of scandal and there’s been a lot written about the Bridgertons, we’ve had this safety blanket, which is Penelope and how close she is to us,” he says. “So it’s going to be really interesting to see if that suddenly takes a turn.” 

Despite his party misdeed in Season 2, Colin does have some righteousness on his side following Whistledown’s sabotage of his Season 1 ex-fiancée, Marina Thompson (Ruby Barker). Penelope-as-Whistledown outed Marina’s pre-London pregnancy to the ton, dashing her hopes of marrying Colin as a cover for her baby. Should Colin learn of Penelope’s work as Lady Whistledown — as he does in the book version of their love story, Romancing Mister Bridgerton — he will realize her hand is Marina’s downfall. “That’s another layer. I actually have no idea [how that will play out], which makes me glad because I can’t then say something spoilery,” Coughlan laughs. “I’m assuming if Colin finds out about her secret, he’s going to connect those dots pretty quick.” 

Nicola Coughlan told you — drama.