Bridgerton season 2 relationship guide: Anthony and Kate (Spoilers)

The time has finally come, dear readers! Bridgerton season 2 is now available to stream on Netflix, and fans are so ready to dive into another exciting installment of the addicting romance drama. We’re in for a brand-new story this time around, as we follow Daphne Bridgerton’s (Phoebe Dynevor) brother Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and his journey to finding true love.

Although at the end of season 1 Anthony swears off marrying for love, things take a turn in season 2 when he meets Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley).

But of course, nothing comes that easy for these characters. Anthony actually starts off courting Kate’s younger sister Edwina (Charithra Chandran), the season’s “diamond” and most eligible bachelorette. Despite his attempts to stay away from Kate, however, Anthony finds himself in an extremely tricky situation. Who does he end up with? And what happens in his relationship with Kate? We answer all of your questions below!

Spoilers ahead for Bridgerton season 2.

Bridgerton cast: Who plays Anthony and Kate in season 2?

Reprising his role as Anthony Bridgerton from season 1, Jonathan Bailey portrays the Viscount. Viewers might recognize the actor from the shows Broadchurch, Jack Ryan, Doctor Who, and Crashing. The up-and-coming British star is 33 years old and has been open about being a gay man and not hiding his sexuality to find roles.

Kate Sharma is a newcomer to Bridgerton season 2, and she’s played by Simone Ashley. The 26-year-old British actress is best known for her role as Olivia Hanan in Netflix’s Sex Education. She’s also appeared in Broadchurch like her co-star Jonathan Bailey, and the shows The Sister and Doctors.

When do Anthony and Kate kiss for the first time in Bridgerton season 2?

It takes six episodes for Anthony and Kate to kiss for the first time! This game of will-they, won’t-they is serious this season, I’m telling you. In episode 6, Anthony and Edwina’s wedding is in full swing with a full audience. Up on the altar, however, Edwina finally realizes that Anthony and Kate are in love, and she runs out of the church.

Later on once everyone is gone, Anthony and Kate find themselves alone in the church up on the altar. They have some back and forth, before they decide to follow their feelings for one another and passionately kiss. This is how episode 6 ends.

Do Anthony and Kate have sex scenes in Bridgerton season 2?

Bridgerton became an instant success when it debuted on Netflix at the end of 2020, and many viewers couldn’t stop talking about the amount of nudity and sex scenes featured. The series is certainly romantic and steamy, which is one of the biggest reasons it’s rated TV-MA. And while season 2 is a bit cooled down compared to season 1, there’s still a few sex scenes. And yes, some are between Anthony and Kate.

Anthony and Kate first get intimate in episode 7, which is the penultimate episode of the season. They had already kissed in episode 6, but this is when they give into each other totally and have sex. It’s super satisfying for the viewer because we watched the two characters go back and forth with their feelings for another, and now they finally stop denying their love.

Their sex scene in episode 7 lasts about two minutes, in case you have little ones around and need to skip it (or you want to rewind and rewatch, we’re not judging!).

There’s then a semi-sex scene with Anthony and Kate in the Bridgerton season 2 finale, right at the end. After the two get together and we see Lady Whistledown write her final letter of the season, we then get a steamy scene between the lovers. We get a glimpse of them right after they have sex, and we see some kissing and suggestive language before the two decide to go see Anthony’s family who are waiting outside. These are the final minutes of season 2.

Bridgerton season 2 nudity

As mentioned, the nudity and sex scenes are toned down in season 2, but that doesn’t mean there’s none of it. There’s partial nudity in Anthony and Kate’s first sex scene as Kate keeps her corset top on the whole time but doesn’t have bottoms on. In their second intimate scene, both characters are completely unclothed and we see more nudity.

Apart from Kate and Anthony, Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) has a sexual scene in episode 5 with one of the models at his art school. She’s seen nude from the waist up earlier on in the episode when Benedict draws her, and then the same way in the final minutes of the episode when she and Benedict get together. For Benedict’s part, he’s seen fully nude from the back and the side. Their intimate scene only lasts a few seconds.

While speaking to Radio Times, showrunner Chris van Dusen opened up on why there’s less sex and nudity in season 2:

"“It was never about quantity for us. Our approach to intimacy on the show really is the same as season 1. And we use these intimate scenes to tell a story and to push the story forward. We’ve never done a sex scene for the sake of doing a sex scene, and I don’t think we ever will. It all serves a larger purpose and it’s a different story this season. It’s different characters. We’re with Anthony and Kate most of the season and that’s very different from Daphne and Simon. And that’s really part of the draw to me of a project like this, the ability to tell these close-ended love stories of different characters season after season.”"

Do Anthony and Kate end up together in Bridgerton season 2?

Although they have quite the will-they, won’t-they relationship throughout season 2, Anthony and Kate do end up together in the end! It takes them basically the entire season to admit they’re in love with each other, and they agree to get married. Finally! This season gets a little exhausting because the two characters try to deny their feelings in each scene, but we’re happy they get together eventually.

Do Anthony and Kate get married in Bridgerton season 2?

Kate and Anthony finally get together in the Bridgerton season 2 finale, and they do get married! The only upsetting part is that we don’t get to see their wedding. We hope to get more from the couple next season, which might be — but has not been confirmed yet — based on the book An Offer from a Gentleman. That one follows Benedict’s journey to finding love. The full cast hasn’t been announced yet, but we’re hoping Bailey and Ashley will be back for season 3.

Anthony and Kate differences from Bridgerton books

One thing people will likely talk a lot about regarding season 2 is that the story is pretty different from the second Bridgerton book, The Viscount Who Loved Me. I haven’t personally read the book, but according to PopSugar, Anthony and Kate actually get married in the book because of a scandal that almost happens in the show. In episode 3, Kate gets stung by a bee which alarms Anthony, considering his father Edmund died of a bee sting. In the show, this is a slightly intimate moment where they almost kiss, and then they move on.

But in the book, however, because it looks like they’re about to get physical after the bee sting, they are forced to get married in order to avoid a major controversy. They wed, but it’s not all happily-ever-after, as you’d expect. Anthony is still hellbent on not falling in love, even though he and Kate are falling for each other. By the end of the book, Anthony realizes how wrong he is, but when he goes to fix things, he watches Kate and Edwina get into an accident.

After making sure Kate and Edwina are okay, Anthony professes his love for Kate and they finally have their happy ending.

We’re not sure why season 2 is so different from the book, but perhaps Chris van Dusen and the writers behind the new installment will shed a light on that decision sometime soon.

All eight episodes of Bridgerton season 2 are now streaming on Netflix, so get your wine and popcorn ready for another addicting binge! Fans are bound to fall in love with Anthony and Kate, who they’re already adorably calling “Kathony!”