Nicola Coughlan responds to “bizarre” body comments after weight loss during 'Bridgerton'

Nicola Coughlan says body comments overshadowed her work on 'Bridgerton' after losing weight

Bridgerton actor Nicola Coughlan has addressed comments about her body following weight loss during the filming of the Netflix series, saying she has “no interest” in discussing body positivity.

Coughlan, who plays Penelope in Bridgerton, spoke about the issue in an interview with Elle published on March 4. She explained that discussions about her appearance have often overshadowed her work on the period drama.

“The thing I say sometimes that pisses people off is, ‘I have no interest in body positivity,’” she said. “When I was a kid growing up, I never thought about that. I didn’t look at actors and think about their bodies. So, I actually don’t care.”

She added that while she has interests she is passionate about, body image debates are not among them. “There’s a lot of things I’m passionate about, it’s not one of them. That’s someone else’s thing. It’s not mine.”

Coughlan also described reactions to her appearance during the third season of the show, which included several scenes with co-star Luke Newton, who portrays Colin Bridgerton. She said she had been exercising frequently while filming and had lost weight during the production period.

“What was really bizarre was, when I was shooting that series, I was exercising a lot because I knew I had to, so I had lost a bunch of weight—I was probably a size 10 and one of the corsets was a size 8,” she said. “And then people talked about how I was plus-size and I was like, 'How f--ked are we that I am the biggest woman you want to see on screen?’”

The actor also recalled an encounter with a fan who spoke about her body in public. “I remember this really drunk girl once talking to me in a bathroom being like, 'I loved [Bridgerton] because of your body,'” she said. “And started talking about my body, and I was like, 'I want to die. I hate this so much.'”

Coughlan said it can be frustrating when discussions about her work shift towards her appearance. “It’s really hard when you work on something for months and months of your life—you don’t see your family, you really dedicate yourself—and then it comes down to what you look like. It’s so f--king boring.”

The actor also spoke briefly about maintaining a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend Jake Dunn while managing her filming schedule. She said they stay in touch through video calls and messages while both continue working on their respective projects.