‘Bridgerton’ Star Nicola Coughlan Demanded a Cut With Less Nudity to Show Her Mother: ‘It’s Literally Written Into My Contract’

It’s not unusual for “Bridgerton” cast members to strip down on screen, with the Netflix series quickly gaining a reputation for its love scenes after its premiere on the streamer in 2020. Ahead of the coming third season, actor Nicola Coughlan revealed that her negotiations with Netflix and Shondaland included the production of an alternate cut of episodes that did not include those more mature scenes — for the express purpose of showing it to her parents.

Coughlan’s comments came during an interview on SiriusXM Hits 1 after the hosts floated the rumor that she asked for a “PG version.” The actor says she even went as far as getting the language regarding an alternate cut, taming down the TV-MA rating, included in her contract.

“It’s literally written into my contract. People think I’m saying it as a joke,” Coughlan said. “I just don’t want to … We grew up Irish Catholic. That’s just not how we vibe.”

Coughlan went on to describe her mother’s first impression of the series, which establishes a dress code for episodes pretty quickly.

“When she first saw ‘Bridgerton,’ she didn’t know it was going to be saucy. And then you get a bottom — Jonathan Bailey’s lovely bottom — about two minutes into the first episode ever. And she was like, ‘What is this?’” Coughlan recalled. “But then now she thinks it’s fantastic and really funny.”

After appearing through the first two seasons of “Bridgerton,” Coughlan will take on a more prominent role in Season 3, with her Lady Penelope being courted by Colin Bridgerton, played by Luke Newton.

Netflix will debut the third season of “Bridgerton” in two parts later this year — the first on May 16 and the second on June 13.