In the midst of Ruby Barker calling out the studios behind Bridgerton for not supporting her through psychotic breaks and her adamant stance on never reprising the role of Marina Crane (née Thompson), viewers can't help but wonder how Marina's arc in the romantic drama series will play out from here.
The creators can't just drop the character and her story. They will have to revisit it in future episodes, as Marina is currently married to Sir Phillip Crane, who is set to become the main love interest for one of the titular characters, Eloise Bridgerton.
The showmakers can either recast Marina or just let her story unfold behind the camera and be told by other characters, which seems like the better option. But how exactly will the writers deal with Marina's arc moving forward?
Here are five possible plot lines for Season 3 and beyond.
The Book Route
The simplest, but probably most controversial, way to wrap up Marina's arc is to adapt her tragic ending from Julia Quinn's novel. In the books, Marina suffers from postpartum depression after the birth of her children and attempts suicide, which ultimately leads to her death.
This allows her widower Phillip to begin a correspondence and get close to Eloise, setting up their story. But depicting mental health issues now feels like a bad choice, and besides, we already saw Marina with her child in Season 2, and she seemed perfectly fine.
Tragedy
In order for Sir Phillip to be available to Eloise, the show has to make sure that Marina is out of the picture. So they could still kill off the character, but change the circumstances of her death. For example, make it a tragic accident, which feels better than an untreated mental problem.
Runaway
Since Marina and Phillip didn't marry for love, it's natural to assume that neither of them is too happy with their situation. We know Marina as a headstrong and brave woman who can take radical measures when the situation calls for it.
What if she just runs away from the Crane estate? It would be crazy, but not entirely impossible. Of course, Phillip wouldn't be completely free, but it's better than death, right?
Divorce
Of course, there is a legal procedure that would allow Phillip and Marina to separate and live happily ever after. Divorce was rare, but not unheard of in the Regency era. If people had enough money and patience, they could do it officially.
Such a development would be an interesting way to show how the process worked in the past and the ton's attitude toward it.
Changing Eloise's story
What if the writers left Marina and Phillip alone and found another love interest for Eloise instead? This would be the most drastic creative decision, but many viewers feel that Eloise has been changed a lot from her book version and there is no way her story can be the same as it was in the novel. Besides, we are already hooked on her sweet romance with Theo Sharpe.