All products are independently selected by our editors.
If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.
(Just look at the vast television graveyard of failed prequels, spin-offs, and reimaginings as proof.)
India Amarteifio as Young Queen Charlotte.
We know the ending this time, and its not necessarily a happy one.
She and Tom together are just such a power duo, the actor, 21, tellsGlamour.
Complex, beautiful, subtlethe same could be said about Amarteifio.
India Amarteifio as Young Queen Charlotte, Corey Mylchreest as Young King George
It seems like you put a lot of work into that.
Can you tell me about your process?
India Amarteifio:I wish I could, but I didnt actually at all.
“Right from the beginning I had so much respect for Corey,” Amarteifio says. “He puts everything into his work and made me want to work harder.”
They didnt want me to copy anything, and they didnt want me to try and make a caricature.
They just wanted me to create Charlotte, this young 17-year-old girl from Germany who moves to England.
I think through the writing and the direction, it just kind of happened.
Arsema Thomas stars as Young Agatha Danbury, the queen’s closest friend and confidante, inQueen Charlotte.
Also, from my conversations with Golda, I think my understanding of Charlotte is very similar to hers.
I was put off to ever try and emulate Golda because shes such an iconic actress.
But also, the role is so iconic.
From left: Corey Mylchreest as Young King George, India Amarteifio as Young Queen Charlotte, Golda Rosheuvel as Queen Charlotte, and James Fleet as King George
I would never even try and make my own version of it.
Id be way too scared.
So thank you for saying that, but not purposeful at all.
Well, lets back up a little bit.
Walk me through the audition process and what that was like.
It was about four or five months, from November 2021 to February 2022.
There was a very brief audition tape that I sent in November.
I knew it was aboutBridgerton, but I didnt know exactly what it was.
I cant screw up.
It was quite long and lengthy, and then literally February hit and we were in.
After all of that, what were you feeling when you heard you got the part?
The initial feeling was terror because its a massive show.
Do you know what?
Andthenterror naturally kicked in as I realized the full extent of what I was going to have to do.
It still doesnt feel real.
Now that Im speaking about it, Im going, Oh, my gosh.
I did actually do something pretty huge.
Did you do anything to celebrate?
We were still in lockdown.
I was meeting a friend for lunch when I found out.
And she said, Oh, did you ever hear from thatBridgertonthing?
I think I had mentioned it briefly in passing, but I wasnt supposed to tell anyone.
My face must have dropped because she went, You did, didnt you?
And I said, Yeah, but you cant tell anyone.
She burst into tears.
She was like, Right, were getting champagne.
It turned from a nice healthy brunch to a champagne-and-fries kind of brunch, which I wasnt mad about.
Right from the beginning I had so much respect for Corey, Amarteifio says.
He puts everything into his work and made me want to work harder.
Thats a good celebration.
You mentioned earlier a chemistry read with Corey as part of the process.
What was that like?
I still need to ask him why he did that.
I felt quite swamped by that actor and thought hed be great, but nothing quite clicked.
And then I met Corey.
Right from the beginning I had so much respect for the guy.
He puts everything into his work and made me want to work harder.
Im very fortunate that hes so lovely and that we get on.
We speak all the time and catch up.
We have lunch and things like that.
Hes very, very nice, and it made my job very easy.
Once you both got the roles, what did you do to build trust with each other?
I mean, we delved straight into rehearsals.
We got to understand each other through those.
Im a trained dancer, so Im quite confident to move my body.
You cant be any more vulnerable than that.
Once we got that out the way, it was easy to talk and figure each other out.
Questions like, What do you do apart from acting?
Just to get an understanding of someone before you work with them for six months or whatever it is.
When it was announced that you were in the show, did you hear from anyone else in theBridgertoncast?
I didnt initially, and that was probably because they were filming.
They were busy, and season two was about to come out when we first heard about the project.
I think they were kind of in their own realm.
But Ive metNicola Coughlan(Penelope) since.
Ive metClaudia Jessie(Eloise) since.
Theyre all just lovely.
Theyre very, very caring and were very kind to offer their time or their number.
Its not a rushed statement.
Theyre genuinely wanting to double-check that Im okay and supported, which I really feel that I am.
Bridgertonis one of the biggest shows on one of the biggest streaming platforms.
Did you get any advice about joining this huge platform?
Its about the balance.
Im very grateful for that advice.
How much did you study the real-life Queen Charlotte, considering this is a fictionalized version of her?
I read a couple books.
I read a really good book calledStrangest Familyby Janice Hadlow.
Arsema Thomas stars as Young Agatha Danbury, the queens closest friend and confidante, inQueen Charlotte.
Was there anything in particular, a detail maybe, that did stick out for you?
Something that you wanted to bring to the character or have in your mind, in the background?
That really stood out to me because you dont really hear about that in history.
Its all very proper and formal.
That awestruck feeling is what I tried to grasp in that moment and what I could take from history.
Did you talk with Julia Quinn, the author ofBridgerton,during this process?
Yeah, I met her.
She came onto set, actually.
I wasnt filming that day, but I traveled down to meet her.
From my point of view, I was like, Why do you want my advice?
Im just the actor.
You should be speaking to Shonda!
Shes very hands-on, which is nice.
She obviously cares about her books.
It must be crazy.
Shes a very down-to-earth woman for what shes gone through.
Was this your first time working with an intimacy coordinator?
What was that experience like?
It was crucial and imperative, actually.
I knew going into this what the role required from an actors point of view.
This is just part of the job.
Its not going to be good, but get it over and done with.
Its going to be really awkward.
Its going to be really horrible.
And then its done.
They are so important in telling the story, and especially this love story.
Its a vital part of how George and Charlotte come together.
They really listened and took in everything we asked.
It set the bar for me, because now I will never not work with an intimacy coordinator.
Ill never not have that level of dedication to the scenes again.
In what ways did you relate to Charlotte the most?
Im always trying to find where I fit and who I am.
Part of acting is understandingwhyyou are playing someone.
Youve got to play the truth of it and feel what theyre really feeling.
I was thinking, Yeah, that happened to me last week on the bus.
I could draw from those conclusions.
Ive always lived here, never felt not welcomed into a country.
Theyre happy with whatever decisions that I make, and I make them for myself.
Whereas Charlotte is not, at first, given that liberty.
I found that really difficult because Ive never grown up that way.
Everything was open to me, which Im very fortunate about.
So that was difficult to figure out.
And I think you would have every right to get an answer back.
Probably turn my phone off, if Im being honest.
I get overwhelmed very quickly, which is something Im realizing.
I get overwhelmed by lots of people and messages and things like that.
Because who knows what could happen after that.
I may never experience anything, probablywillnever experience anything like this again.
Is there a dream role for you once this is over?
If you’ve got the option to manifest the next thing, what would that look like?
You know, I keep saying that I would love to work with Jordan Peele, the director.
I love his work.
Hes completely flipped that on its head and empowered people in his films.
We need more of that.
Id love to work with him.
I think hes revolutionary.
Working withShonda Rhimesmust have also been an incredible experience.
What were your conversations with her like?
And Im like, Where am I going to find this from?
It doesnt make sense.
Her writing makes sense, and she and Tom together are just such a power duo.
She was just very helpful.
Im hoping Ill get to see and speak to her more and thank her, probably.
Last question: What was the biggest lesson or takeaway you got from doing this?
I used to be quite black-and-white about the world.
This time last year I would think, Well, that persons rude so theyre not nicewhatever.
What you see is not always what you get.
Anna Moeslein is the deputy editor atGlamour.
