This article contains spoilers for Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.
One of the best parts of Queen Charlotte is the relationship between young Brimsley (Sam Clemmett) and Reynolds (Freddie Dennis). They may struggle to balance their duties to Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifo) and King George (Corey Mylchreest) with their feelings for each other, but they seem happy when we last see them together. During Charlotte and George’s ball celebrating the birth of their first son, Brimsley and Reynolds sneak a dance together in the garden as an orchestral version of “I Will Always Love You” plays in the background. But just as we see them gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes, we are taken back to the Regency Era where an adult Brimsley (Hugh Sachs) dances alone, begging the question: Where is Reynolds?
When the adult Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) goes to visit George (James Fleet) at his Kew estate, there is hope that we may see an adult Reynolds there. It would make sense that we haven’t seen him thus far in Queen Charlotte or Bridgerton as we haven’t spent much time with the adult version of George either. As the King’s Man, Reynolds is bound by duty to stay with the King as much as possible, so when we don’t see him at Kew, it’s easy to believe the worst – that Brimsley was dancing alone because Reynolds died.
Thankfully, however, this doesn’t seem to be the case. In a red carpet interview with Vulture, Hugh Sachs says that “There was a scene that we didn’t film, because it was cut, where I was going to meet the older Reynolds. He was the love of his life, and for whatever reason, they could not stay together. So when they would pass each other in the passageway in the deleted scene, it wasn’t a toxic moment. Because of the world they inhabited, it was still a hangable offense to be gay, and it was just not possible.”
While this scene would mean that Reynolds is alive and well, it’s still a heartbreaking moment for their relationship. Brimsley and Reynolds being kept apart by the homophobia of the time period rather than death is almost more cruel, given that one is a choice made by people and the other is an unavoidable aspect of life. But, at least we know that there aren’t any hard feelings between the two and that their breakup appears to be a mutual decision.
Brimsley and Reynolds’ loyalty to Charlotte and George is admirable, but it’s hard not to think that their duties factored into their decision to end their relationship. If they didn’t care so much about the King and Queen, then maybe Brimsley and Reynolds could have abandoned their stations and run off to a farm or something in the middle of nowhere to live out their days together. It’s a shame that they would have had to choose, but at least they could have stayed with each other.
There’s no word yet on whether Reynolds will make an official appearance in the Regency timeline, but it’s not too late for him and Brimsley to rekindle their romance. I’m not expecting this world to suddenly become progressive and accepting, but Brimsley and Reynolds have done and given up so much for the crown, it’s only fair that they get to retire together and have the love story they deserve before the series ends.
All six episodes of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story are available to stream on Netflix now.