Bridgerton’s season four hasn’t even released, so why is the backlash already so loud?

Bridgerton’s season four hasn’t even aired yet, but its marketing campaign is already facing backlash, with viewers accusing Netflix and Shondaland of repeating long-standing issues around race, visibility and who the show chooses to prioritise.

The criticism isn’t about a single bad post or mistake. People say it’s about a pattern they’ve noticed over several seasons, especially when it comes to how women of colour are promoted compared to white characters.

Bridgerton was meant to break the mould

via Netflix

When Bridgerton first released on Netflix, it was praised for doing something period dramas rarely did. It put people of colour at the centre of Regency romance, rather than keeping them in the background.

Early promotion suggested women of colour would lead love stories in a genre that had long been dominated by white heroines. For many viewers, that felt like a real change, not just in casting but in who got to be seen as desirable and romantic.

As the show has gone on, though, many now feel that promise hasn’t been fully kept.

So what’s gone wrong with season four’s promotion?

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Season four introduces Sophie Beckett, played by Yerin Ha, as the main romantic lead opposite Benedict Bridgerton. Sophie is a woman of colour and a brand-new character, which makes promotion especially important. With only eight episodes per season, marketing helps make it clear whose story the season is about.

During Netflix’s “Twelve Days of Bridgerton” campaign earlier this month, people noticed that Penelope Featherington appeared before Sophie in a key promotional post. Penelope, played by Nicola Coughlan, has been part of the show since season one and already led season three with Colin.

Although Sophie has been introduced elsewhere, many felt the build-up to her season should have centred on her first.

The online reaction was blunt. One comment said the show might as well “change the name to The Featheringtons because that’s who they care about”. Another said it was good to see more people finally noticing the pattern. But added they didn’t think anything would change unless viewing figures dropped.

This feels familiar to a lot of people

via Netflix

For long-time viewers, the backlash didn’t come as a surprise. During season two, Kate Sharma, played by Simone Ashley, was the female lead, yet many felt she received less individual promotion than other characters.

Now, people are saying Sophie seems to be in the same position. She’s being introduced with less visibility than white characters who have already had years of story build-up. Several comments pointed out that this keeps happening, and that calling it out in the past hasn’t made much difference.

One reply summed it up, saying that people have criticised the show before, but “they [the showrunners]  just don’t care and keep doing whatever they’ve been doing”.

And then the baby announcement made things worse

It is with great pleasure this author brings to you the official announcement of the Bridgerton family’s latest addition. pic.twitter.com/pjzS9KmFAh

— Bridgerton (@bridgerton) December 21, 2025

The backlash grew after Bridgerton’s official account announced the birth of Penelope and Colin’s baby, Lord Elliot Featherington. Styled as a Lady Whistledown society paper, it was the first time the show had publicly named and celebrated a newborn through official promotion.

People were quick to point out that no similar announcements were made for the children of previous leading couples. Anthony and Kate’s child has never been named publicly, despite Anthony being the Viscount. The same goes for the children of Simon and Daphne.

bridgerton building its name on diversity/inclusivity then proceeding to sideline any couples with poc and give the most attention to the white4white couple (objectively their weakest and most boring pairing so far mind you) is evil actually https://t.co/wOv45I4NpI pic.twitter.com/CGI7XVRC1q

— -ˏˋ⋆ linternet explorer ⋆ˊˎ- (@g2itter2eo) December 21, 2025

Many stressed that the issue wasn’t the baby itself. It was the selective attention. In a show where family, titles and legacy matter, choosing which families get acknowledged sends a clear message about whose stories are treated as important.

The Tab has reached out to Netflix for comment.

Bridgeton is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news and drops, like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.