Brimsley and Reynolds are two of the most critical characters to the advancement of the royal love story at the heart of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, in their roles as key members of the royal staff.
Source: Liam Daniel / Netflix
BOSSIP spoke with Sam Clemmett (Brimsley) and Freddie Dennis (Reynolds) about theNetflix hit series and the challenges they encountered playing the Queen’s man and the King’s man, who are in some senses, the people closest to them on the show.
“One of the most difficult things about playing Reynolds and Brimsley is this idea that, you actually in your duties as a butler, you can’t really show how you feel about something, no matter how much you love or care for the person that you are looking after,” Freddie Dennis told BOSSIP. “So as an actor that was really fascinating and at times challenging to go, ‘How human can I be in this moment? In my response to what’s going on.”
Source: Nick Wall / Netflix
Fans of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story have Brimsley and Reynolds to thank for keeping the lines of communication open between Charlotte and George when their circumstances threaten to drive them apart.
“There was a constant conversation with Tom Verica our director on set and treading this line of, ‘How often can I have an opinion on something within our conversations and relationships with the King and the Queen respectively?’” Samuel Clemmett agreed. “Speaking for Brimsley there are moments throughout that we really really try to push that without explicitly saying or giving advice to her.”
Source: Liam Daniel / Netflix
“You know a lot of what we do in this show is unspoken,” Clemmett added. “It’s what’s not said and it’s told within a look. And then I think again, in respect of our relationship, the moment that they are sort of united and they don’t have to even look at each other or say anything to each other is when he’s so physically supportive of her in episode five he has his hand up when she’s faltering in the corridor and nothing is said. They don’t look at each other but she knows that he is there for her and that is the foundation of their relationship.”
Source: Nick Wall / Netflix
The relationship between Brimsley and Reynolds has also added an incredible new dynamic to the Bridgerton series, with the pair engaging in the first same-sex intimacy scenes between two major characters that we have seen in the series thus far.
“I think it was really important in a period piece that there are clear relationships explored on screen and for this to be in parallel with all the other relationships and live so beautifully and joyfully in the show I think is really really important and it’s really empowering for us to tell that story,” Freddie Dennis told us.
Source: Nick Wall / Netflix
“I think everyone should feel represented by what they see in film and television and it’s just beyond a privilege to be part of a world that celebrates inclusion and diversity as much as Queen Charlotte and Bridgerton,” Sam Clemmett told BOSSIP. “For the intimacy scenes, we had the brilliant intimacy coordinators Lucy Fennell and Lizzie Tolbert. They looked out for us and created a really comfortable respectful set to be able for us to do our thing.”
And the thing they did indeed! We still have so many questions about what happened to Reynolds and why we see Brimsley alone at the end. Hopefully we’ll get more of Brimsley and Reynolds in the next season of Bridgerton too!
All six episodes of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story are streaming now on Netflix.
