Everything You Need to Know the Newest Bridgerton, Francesca

With the arrival of the new season of Netflix's period drama Bridgerton, viewers quickly noticed a significant change: the actress portraying Francesca had been replaced. In the first two seasons, Ruby Stokes played Francesca Bridgerton, but she left the role to star in the supernatural drama Lockwood and Co., also on Netflix. In the third season, Hannah Dodd steps into the role of Francesca, the sixth Bridgerton sibling. Dodd is no stranger to the streaming platform, having starred alongside Millie Bobby Brown in Enola Holmes 2.

Hannah Dodd, born in Colchester, England, studied at the London Studio Centre, graduating in 2017. As a model and actress, she made her debut in the Hulu series Find Me in Paris (2018-2020) and later played Sophie Fitzwilliam in Harlots. In 2021, Dodd joined the cast of the Netflix series Anatomy of a Scandal as the young version of Sienna Miller's character and starred as Sarah Chapman in Enola Holmes 2.

In the first two seasons, Francesca Bridgerton, portrayed by Ruby Stokes, appeared in five episodes. Initially, she is introduced alongside her family as they await her older sister Daphne's debut. Francesca spends much of the first season in Bath with her Aunt Winnie but returns to Mayfair, where she impresses everyone with her piano skills, honed over the summer. Although she often appears playing the piano, Francesca did not play a central role in the storylines until the third season. Bridgerton, based on Julia Quinn's romantic novels, sees Francesca become the protagonist in the sixth book, When He Was Wicked. This shift explains why her character is gaining more attention after two seasons.