If you’re one of the millions of TV bingers who devoured the new regency-London-meets-Gossip-Girl series Bridgerton recently, chances are you’re totally crushing on Simon, the Duke of Hastings. You might even be wondering if he has a wife or girlfriend — or if he’s single IRL. Well, here’s what we know about actor Regé-Jean Page‘s love life at the moment.
The 31-year-old who stole many a viewer’s heart amid the 8-episode season of Netflix‘s newest hit was spotted hugging athlete Emily Brown on the streets of London in February 2021 — which quickly sparked romance rumors. The blonde beauty plays part-time soccer for South-West London’s FBB Warriors, according to the Daily Mail.
Though the British-Zimbabwean performer was seen packing on the PDA with the footballer, it is unclear if the pair are, in fact, dating. Additionally, Rege appears to be quite private when it comes to his personal life, and he has yet to post any photos with a possible romantic partner to his social media. It looks like he mostly uses his Instagram profile to share footage and photos from his many TV and film projects.
Though it is unclear whether or not the Duke is in a relationship in real life, Regé-Jean has gone on the record to make it clear he is not quite the same in love as the character he plays.
“It’s a huge compliment to know that people trust me with characters that they want an audience to fall in love with … But that person on screen isn’t me,” the London native told The I in late December. “The idea of Prince Charming is wonderful, so long as you can figure out what’s actually charming to us now.”
In the romance-mystery series, Regé-Jean’s character is a charming womanizer who seems to attract nearly every woman he meets, yet he wants none of them. The duke wishes to stay unmarried, which is quite unheard of in English high society at that time. He then meets his best friend’s sister, Daphne Bridgerton (played by Phoebe Dynevor), with whom he agrees to fake a relationship to help her gain the favor of Queen Charlotte and London’s anonymous gossip queen, Lady Whistledown, while he enjoys the perks of appearing to be romantically unavailable.
Prior to his starring turn in the Shonda Rhimes-produced series, the actor appeared in the 2016 miniseries Roots and the ABC legal drama For the People, which ran for two seasons before being canceled in 2019. He also starred in the 2020 film Sylvie’s Love.