‘Bridgerton’ Director Breaks Down Episode 5’s Viral Dance, Love Confession and Steamy Scene

For every season of “Bridgerton,” there’s at least one moment that goes viral, and this one’s by far was the dance performed by Hyacinth (Florence Hunt) and Gregory (Will Tilston) at Season 4’s junior ball, which caught even director Rayne Harris by surprise.

While Harris had no way of knowing the dance would be what fans grasped onto from the season, she knew the songs used during the sequence, Charli XCX’s “360” and Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather,” were special, as was the chance to see Hyacinth and Gregory step further into the spotlight as their leading seasons inch closer and closer.

“It’s just nice to see that the world feels similarly about that moment in Hyacinth’s life and in this particular this recital,” Harris, winner of the Shondaland and SeriesFest’s 2022 Women Directing Mentorship, told TheWrap. “It’s been really special to see all the people bouncing around the world trying to do it because I’ve memorized it myself, because I’ve seen it so many times — I went to so many rehearsals. But now it’s so weird to see people in all walks of life doing the same thing through the grocery store.”

Harris noted the dance, which was choreographed by Jack Murphy, embraces both the feel of a Sadie Hawkins dance of switching partners until you find the right one — mirroring how both dating and Hyacinth feels — as well as evokes a sense of nostalgia from previous “Bridgerton” dances that involve a circular shape.

But above all, Harris aimed to create a safe and playful environment for the young leads, saying “they’re both growing towards something that we all know is coming, but I think it’s really important that they feel safe getting there.”

“I had a lot of conversations with them about just their excitement over this, maybe their nerves, whatever they kind of felt stepping into the spotlight,” Harris said. “But on the day, I just wanted them to have fun.”

In addition to the recital, Harris was also behind the direction for Benedict’s love confession to Sophie and that steamy scene that followed, as well as the first hints at a connection between Francesca and Michaela.

Harris, who credits countless crew, including her editor Jessie Marion and assistant editor Ryan [Patrick Brennan] for making Episode 5 come together, breaks it all down below.

TheWrap: Episode 5 picks up after that damning mistress ask. How did that ask set the tone for the episode and where do we find Sophie and Benedict after that?

Harris: That mistress ask hit me in the heart! We’ve all been there when men just say things that they shouldn’t. So for me, it was from showing the yearning that he had and him just simply being someone who just didn’t get it right. I think he knew by the time he saw her again that he had messed up and I just wanted to show that it wasn’t from a place trying to hide her, but rather just a lack of awareness. I think he earned all of our trust back. It was my prayer that by the end of the episode, with that confession, we all felt like they deserve to be together, and that he wasn’t, in any way, trying to coerce [her].

Sophie even softens to him during the recital. How did you want to portray that moment?

A lot of these balls have so many looks and so many moments, and you have to capture so many things, but the core of it, I kept reminding myself, was that love story. Even though we’re seeing all these other characters in a new light and giving this chance to play, I kept coming back to “how are these two feeling?” This is something they can’t do publicly together — this is something that kind of hurts in some way for them to see, because why wouldn’t you want to be right next to your partner watching it, or out there on the floor too? I just wanted to show that yearning and that desire from both of them.

We then get that big love confession. Was there any pressure that came with capturing it?

There was a little bit of pressure … but I make sure the work happens under the surface and that the actors never feel that. I didn’t know if this confession would be the one that people latched onto, because you really never know what the writing is that they’re going to grab onto, but I think for me, it was more about, “how do I let Luke feel safe to be the level of vulnerable that he needs to be in the scene? How do I let make sure the space is for both of them to go to wherever they need to go to deliver their best work?” We shot it over a couple days, actually, and I think that gave us space to know that we’re going to come back to this.

Was there one take that you saw that you thought, “that’s the one?”

Before we even got to shoot that scene, Luke and I talked about how would we want to stage this? And of course, we rehearsed all the steps of the intimacy scene that followed with Lizzy Talbot involved and Jess [Brownell], but in terms of the work of the scene itself, I remember us talking about how we were going to take steps at first. I think it was scripted that he was going to step forward on each “I love you.” And he actually was the one that suggested this moment of just surrender and his arms going out, and I was like, “Yes.”

And then on the day, when he was more emotional and let himself go there, and he just put his arms out, I was crying behind the monitor. I was like, “That’s it! That’s what any person wants to hear!” and that’s the way you want to see it, as a full surrender. But it was really important to me, visually, that he never crossed the middle line, that she do the rest of the walk up to it. So much about consent, was really important to me in the scene, both in those speeches beforehand, but also in the intimacy itself. I needed to see her meet him halfway, and I never wanted it to feel like he was trying to do more or force anything or overtake her in any way.

How did you want to craft the intimacy scene that follows?

It was actually the first time I’d actually done an intimacy scene to this level and on the page, the thing I really saw [was that] they sleep together, and they’re equals [but] … what does that look like? I wanted to craft it around the room, because I wanted it to feel like a long journey. A lot of times, foreplay is the best part, so the taking off the clothes, all of that movement, I wanted to switch who is in power. As a bisexual woman myself, I think the idea of power dynamics is really a big thing in that space, so I wanted to show that she was driving him backwards, but he was the one that puts her on a nightstand, but she was the one that takes off the last piece of clothing.

I downloaded all of my desires onto [Lizzy] … and then I left the space and let her help them talk about what it looks like and how to go there. And then when I came back, they showed it to me, and we talked about how many items of clothing needed to be removed — you never see socks and shoes go off … but they suddenly are gone. But one really special piece was that Lizzy and I discussed that this is the first time they can make eye contact in “Bridgerton” and take off clothes because of her status, and to me, that was definitely screaming equals. But the other piece was who would be the last person to remove something … It was really important to me that she knew the last one that says “yes” … and really important to Jess that she’s been taken care of in this scene also. She spent all this time taking care of him and taking care of so many people in this position, but we wanted this to feel like there was a role reversal in that way, but also a leveling of status in this space.

It’s a sexy scene but still very sweet and romantic at times. How did you land on the tone of scene?

There’s stages to intimacy — it’s not just hot, hot, hot, so while the kissing and the taking up clothes was hot, I wanted that moment of silliness where he knocks everything off and puts her down. Originally, I planned that she was going to hit her head or something, so that they had a moment of laughter. But I think it came through without actually doing something like that. And then the song builds and changes, and obviously they slow down, and we have a little moment of slow-mo … I wanted to remind us that this was romantic, not just sexy. That’s why it’s so long — I’ve gotten the note, and it is a long scene, and I’m like, “did you check out at any point?” I hope not, because I feel like there was a building of this thing. I think it was brilliant that Shonda and Jess decided ultimately to end on the highest note.

We also get to see the starts of Francesca and Michaela. How did you want to portray their connection?

They’re so ridiculously talented, and I think the way that they bounce off of each other was really special. It was nice to show this friendship forming and maybe a little bit of a spark, but really more focused on what happens when you meet someone and you don’t necessarily understand them, and you let your walls down. That scene meant a lot to me, because it was a fight … but we got to ultimately come to friendship.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

“Bridgerton” Seasons 1-4 are now streaming.

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