Meet these two Filipino actors in 'Bridgerton' season 3
Netflix finally premiered its third season of Bridgerton on May 16, introducing two new Filipino cast members to the series.
In case you didn't catch it in the show, the Pinoy nobles include Lord Basilio and Lord Barnell starred by James Bradwell and Martin Sarreal, respectively.
Lord Basilio
Lord Basilio (played by the Filipino-British Bradwell) debuted in the first episode of the season where the character is seen approaching the Bridgerton daughter Francesca and speaking to her at the ball. Francesca Bridgerton is played by Hannah Dodd who recently made her series debut after replacing Ruby Stokes just in time.
The character was also present in the second episode as he was seen talking to Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) at a ball.
In an Instagram post, Bradwell unveiled the character a few hours ahead of the premiere, showing selfie mirror snaps and off-cam scenes of the production.
"Presenting The Viscount Lord Basilio!" he captioned.
"Had such a gorgeous time playing my small part of The Ton this season, not least in bringing the first Filipino name to the roster of Lords and Debutantes," Bradwell continued.
The theater artist revealed he suggested a lot of Filipino surnames to represent his heritage when the role was originally offered to him with a different East Asian name until Basilio was taken into the series which means royal, according to his Instagram story.
"Feeling emboldened to reach out to production, I was met with an enthusiastic response welcoming and encouraging my input. I suggested a number of Filipino surnames and Basilio was born!" he said.
Lord Barnell
Another Filipino you can spot in the first ball of the season is Lord Barnell.
UK-based singer and actor Sarreal took time to celebrate on Instagram the existence of "two Pinoys in the Bridgerton universe" with photos of him in character and snaps of him with Bradwell.
"Had loads of fun stepping into Lord Barnell’s shoes (and sticking on those sideburns) on a wonderful job jam-packed with fantastic people," he quipped.
"Made some great, new pals on this and got to reconnect with some old ones," Sarreal added.
Premiered in 2020, Bridgerton is a historical romance series adapted from the book series by American author Julia Pottinger. The series delves into the adventure of noble siblings who ventured into Regency London’s competitive marriage market in search of romance.
