Florence Hunt‘s Hyacinth has been the baby of the family on “Bridgerton” for a long time. When Hunt first joined the Netflix show to play the household’s youngest child in 2019, she was a 12-year-old about to make her television debut in the Netflix fantasy series “Cursed.” Now on the cusp of 19, and a two-time SAG Award nominee for ensemble performance, Hunt has spent her teen years transporting between modern-day England and Regency-era London
Bridgerton” is based on author Julia Quinn’s romance novels, with each book and subsequent season focusing on a specific sibling. Hyacinth’s novel, “It’s In His Kiss,” is the seventh installment, and introduces her love interest Gareth St. Clair as a young man struggling with a spiteful father and who’s looking to translate his late mother’s diary from Italian to English — which is where Hyacinth comes into play
Throughout the show’s first three seasons, since she was so young, Hyacinth’s role has been a relatively limited one. She can usually be seen in family settings, catching her siblings off-guard with well-meaning but surprisingly insightful questions about their love lives, and bringing an endearing innocence to the show. Season 4 marks a turning point not only for Hyacinth, but for the Bridgerton line-up as well. Officially halfway done with Quinn’s books — with four siblings’ stories told, and four to still be explored — viewers see Hyacinth begin to step closer toward the spotlight this season.
Previous seasons focused on the romances of Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon Bassett (Regé-Jean Page), Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) and most recently, Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan)
Now it’s finally tortured artist Benedict Bridgerton’s (Luke Thompson) turn. Captivated by a stranger who ultimately flees his mother’s masquerade ball, Benedict is unknowingly reunited with his “Lady in Silver,” this time as herself: a young maid named Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha) to whom he is deeply drawn. Simultaneously, Benedict’s siblings continue to navigate their own lives, and Sophie is eventually brought into Bridgerton house as Hyacinth and Eloise’s lady’s maid
And for the first time in the show, Hyacinth has a storyline that is all hers. The teenager is desperate to debut in Regency-era England, sneaking into society events and eagerly attending etiquette lessons under the watchful eye of her sister Eloise (Claudia Jesse). While her eventual beau and days of translating Italian are down the road, Hyacinth is ready to step out into the world. As the Bridgerton house footman John remarks in the season’s opening sequence, “Princess Hyacinth has risen.”
Hunt spoke with Variety about growing up on the set of one of Netflix’s most popular shows, her character’s longing to enter society — and what lies ahead for Hyacinth Bridgerton.
You were 12 years old when you first started on “Bridgerton,” and you’re now 18. What has it been like to grow up with Hyacinth
It’s a good proportion of my entire existence, which is crazy to think about. It’s an absolute honor to grow up with any character, but especially that character being Hyacinth, who is someone who I really adore
This season, Hyacinth is impatient, and wants to debut in society and be out in the world. The housekeeper remarks she’s tried to sneak into a ball four times, with audiences seeing one of these take place at the masquerade ball. Is Hyacinth eager to start her own life, after watching so many of her siblings fall in love and start families
I’ve got one older sister, and I think [it’s] natural when you’re younger, and you have a sibling that you look up to. Hyacinth’s got seven older siblings, and they’re going through these adult situations, and her main exposure to the world is through her siblings. As a younger child, you’re desperate to get there and join them on that journey, but you can’t quite comprehend the fact that you’re younger and that can’t happen yet. I feel like I related to that when I was younger, and my sister got a social media app before I did, and I was like, “That is not fair!” You want to be on the same level as them, and Hyacinth is really trying to join in with her older siblings.
