It appears Netflix’s Bridgerton is straying away from the period drama’s book order.

It has just been revealed that Season 3 of the hit series will follow Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington’s (Nicola Coughlan) love story. This skips over Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) and Sophie Beckett’s romance, which was the subject of Julia Quinn’s third book of the Bridgerton series.

Although many Bridgerton fans are thrilled that Colin and Penelope have been named the leads of Season 3, others are outraged that the show is putting Benedict’s story on hold.

And though some fans have thought that Benedict was implied to be queer in the TV adaptation, it seems like that is also not the case.

“I’ve seen a lot of discussion about Benedict’s sexuality in Season 1,” season 1-2 showrunner Chris Van Dusen told TV Line. “But the storyline [of him befriending] Henry was really about tolerance in a really intolerant time, and showing Benedict in that world. I love the story in Season 1 and would love to continue it into the future.”

On moving Penelope and Colin's story up, new showrunner Jess Brownell told Variety:

“I really feel like it’s Colin and Penelope’s time. Because we’ve been watching both of these actors on our screens since Season 1, we’ve already invested in them a little bit. We know who they are as people,” she said. “I feel like, especially in the last season, there are these moments of tension between them where it’s like, Colin walks up to the line of almost realizing that Penelope has feelings for him but doesn’t quite get there. Instead of treading water on that dynamic, we wanted to push it into their season. It really felt like the perfect moment to tee it up.”

On when Benedict’s story will take center stage, she explained, “So, you know, I think Shonda Rhimes has said publicly before that she wants to have eight seasons. We hope to get to tell every sibling’s love story and they will always be in each season.”

Check out fan reactions below;

Season 3 of Bridgerton is expected to premiere on Netflix in early 2023.