Luke Newton is a leading man on and off the small screen. On Wednesday, the 31-year-old Bridgerton star — who steps up as the latest Bridgerton sibling to find their soulmate in the Netflix series’ latest season — was spotted with his rumored girlfriend, Antonia Roumelioti, after the show’s midseason premiere in London.
In photos obtained by People, Newton and the dancer leave the season 3 premiere’s after-party, held at 180 Strand, hand-in-hand.
Roumelioti stunned in a backless, floor-length, aqua dress as her acting beau looked casually dapper in black dress pants with a yellow button-down over a white tank top.
The outing is the first time the rumored couple has been photographed together and is a sweet occasion for Roumelioti to show her support for Newton as he caps his leading season of the Netflix series.
Part 2 of Bridgerton‘s third season aired on Thursday, giving fans the long-awaited happy ending between Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin Bridgerton (Newton).
The fan-favorite romance was sealed with the longest sex scene in the show’s history. At nearly six minutes long, the spicy episode five scene is set to a string cover of Ariana Grande’s “POV.”
When ET spoke to Coughlin back in June 2023, she opened up about kissing Newton, her real-life pal, for the show.
“Luke and I read the books at the beginning of season 1, and it was funny to us. We were like, ‘Imagine if we have to kiss and do this.’ And then season 3 come on and we were like, ‘Oh god,’ and then it’s like, it’s my friend. I have to kiss my friend,” Coughlin told ET. “And you can’t pretend to kiss someone, you have to really kiss them. It’s a spicy one. It’s a lot of the stuff from the books that the fans expect has made it into the show.”
It’s a feeling Coughlin reiterated in February when ET spoke to her and Newton again about bringing their characters’ romance to the screen.
“They were babies in the first season,” Coughlan told ET of her character and that of her onscreen love interest, Newton. “… It was very intimidating to step in that mantle of the romantic.”
Newton agreed, but said that counting Coughlan as a real-life friend made their new job easier.
“I feel like there’s always that question being asked of, is it easier to do the intimacy scenes or the more romantic scenes with someone who is your friend of four years or someone you just met for one day? I can safely say it’s easier with a friend,” he said. “There really is that sort of support.”
“It’s scary going in, but then, thankfully, we have a really good relationship, so we can talk about it, and we can laugh about it when we need to,” Coughlan added. “It made it scary, but a lot better.”
As for why Penelope and Colin are a perfect couple, Coughlan noted, “They both feel like the overlooked sibling in their families, so to finally have them step into the fortune, it’s a pretty big change.”
The fans agree, with Coughlan explaining, “I think a lot of people see themselves in these characters, because they’re like the two misfits, people who don’t feel quite right. feel unseen.”
The first half of the season premiered on Netflix on May 16, followed by the release of the remaining episodes on June 13.
