Stars react to news that Regé-Jean Page isn’t returning to ‘Bridgerton’

Lady Whistledown delivered some terrible news this past weekend, bringing lavish garden parties everywhere to a halt. According to the fictional famed gossip columnist, the Duke of Hastings, a.k.a. Regé-Jean Page, will not return to Bridgerton when the second season debuts.

Fans weren’t the only ones clutching their pearls when they heard the NAACP-winning, breakout star (who has since hosted Saturday Night Live, began filming the anticipated new Russo brothers flick The Gray Man, and signed up to star in the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons film), won’t return. Celebrities were just as shocked that their favourite spoon-licking character won’t be back for the second season, which traces Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) finding his romantic counterpart—a character named Kate, to be played by Simone Ashley.

Following the social media announcement, Page revealed to Variety that he always knew this was a one-off gig, and that was all a part of the appeal. “It’s a one-season arc. It’s going to have a beginning, middle, end — give us a year,” Page recalled of his initial conversations with producers. “[I thought] ‘That’s interesting,’ because then it felt like a limited series. I get to come in, I get to contribute my bit and then the Bridgerton family rolls on.”

That didn’t make the news any easier for many fans or some of the show’s famous followers. People like Kim Kardashian and Dionne Warwick expressed their disappointment that they will no longer hear the actor “burn” for Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor) next season.

“Wait!!! WHAT???” Kardashian tweeted in response to Page confirming the exciting news. She also took to her Instagram Story on April 2 to share the disappointment. “I’m NOT OK!!!!!” she wrote. “What is happening!!??? How can this be?” Two days later she took executive producer Shonda Rhimes’ public advice and shared that she’s binging Season 1 all over again.

Warwick was equally devastated by the news. “No @regejean! You CANNOT leave me like that. I WILL NOT have it!” she wrote on Twitter. She then demanded a retraction from Lady Whistledown, as one does while processes tough news.

They weren’t the only ones. Drew Barrymore, who previously admitted the show got her back into the idea of dating, retweeted The Drew Barrymore Show’s official reaction to the news, while The View co-host Sunny Hostin also weighed in.

Even John Oliver addressed the exit on Last Week Tonight, using footage from the riots in Greece (which was all a part of a larger point about using footage to make situations seem more dire). “His character’s arc is mostly wrapped up and he does not appear in the rest of the novels,” Oliver defended, citing the books by Julia Quinn, on which the series is based. “It’s really a generational story of the whole family. And also, you could absolutely lose the Duke. It is actually perfectly in his character to start something he doesn’t finish.”

Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan was also quick to reassure fans, promising there is a lot more juicy story about to go down—especially as fans get to know Anthony even better next season. “Season One was just the tip of the Bridgerton iceberg,” she tweeted. “Just you wait to see what we have in store…”

Other fans just wished the best for Page, who is obviously going to have plenty more opportunities coming his way in the near future after capturing so many hearts with the role of Simon Basset. In the meantime, get ready because the petitions and online campaigns for Page to play the next James Bond are about to consume the internet.

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