Bridgerton’s Jessica Madsen on Cressida’s Villain Redemption Arc

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In Bridgerton‘s world, the social season is the one time of year young ladies from “the ton” can wear their finest (and most attention-seeking) dresses and display their mastery of etiquette at a series of lavish balls in hopes of securing a marriage proposal. Unfortunately, nobody taught Cressida Cowper how to properly land a suitable match. For two seasons, the Regency era’s Regina George has connived, gossiped, and wreaked havoc among her fellow debutantes with nary a man or true friend to show for it. But as we’ve come to find out in the hit show’s third season, there’s more than meets the eye with our beloved mean girl, setting forth a villain redemption arc.

“The way Cressida is written is just so delicious,” Jessica Madsen says of her character’s evolving storyline. Before production began on season three of the Netflix series, Madsen got a phone call from executive producer and showrunner Jess Brownell saying that, alongside #Polin’s love story, Cressida would have her own pivotal focus this season. Madsen was both surprised and thrilled at the prospect. Playing the show’s ultimate villain is a treat, but getting to peel back those layers and show the human side of her—a side people wouldn’t expect—is even sweeter.