While Benedict initially declines, later on Benedict and Tilley have conversations over whether Benedict has ever been interested in men.
Though Benedict says “I have known men like Mr. Suarez but I myself have never been tempted before”, Tilley responds “A feeling between two people whatever their sex is the most natural thing in the world.”
The end of episode 7 sees Benedict finding Tilley and Paul, with the three indulging in an impassioned kiss, with this escalating to a steamy threesome in episode 8. But when Benedict returns in the hopes of a second round, Tilley explains that she’s falling in love with Benedict and only wants to date him.
Benedict responds “Tilley, you’re extraordinary but I’m not certain that serious is what I want. What happened between the three of us, what happened since I met you had made me realise how good it feels to be free.”
Though the Bridgerton brother makes clear that he’s not interested in dating Paul, he clearly wants to explore his sexuality and we’re so here for it.
Though his character is yet to label his sexuality, Bridgerton creator Shonda Rhimes explains “This season you watch him explore aspects of himself that he did not even know were there. I also think you watch him find the joy in the debauchery of life.”
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Is Benedict bisexual in the Bridgerton books?
In the original Bridgerton books no reference is made to Benedict being queer, with him actually going on to marry a character that is yet to be introduced to the series called Sophie Beckett.
That said, the Bridgerton’s masquerade ball, which is where Benedict meets Sophie in the books, was finally mentioned at the conclusion of episode 8 so it feels like we’re inching closer to seeing his story play out.
Given that the Netflix show has already tweaked the order of the Julia Quinn books, perhaps future seasons could see Sophie reimagined as a male character, or simply allow Benedict more time to explore his sexuality a little more before they meet. Either way, it doesn’t feel like Bridgerton will let this queer storyline fade into the background.
In 2022, Luke Thompson said of his character’s sexuality: “Benedict has such a lovely openness and fluidity about him generally, and that’s really, really fun to play because it could go anywhere.”
He explained, “People get very excited and they want everything to be explored in the first few seasons and every corner of sexuality, gender. Obviously, there’s a way to go, so we’ll see what happens. There’s lots of space for him to explore all sorts of things.”
So is Benedict Bridgerton bisexual or gay? It remains to be seen how Netflix’s version of Bridgerton will handle his story, though he’s lined up to be Bridgerton season 4’s romantic lead.