Hannah New to join cast of Bridgerton season 3 a 'mystery character'

Hannah New, who starred a few years ago on the Starz series Black Sails, has joined the cast of the upcoming third season of Netflix's Regency period drama. On Oct. 14, her rep confirmed that the British actress will play Lady Tilley Arnold on Bridgerton season 3.

According to Deadline, which first reported the news, the character is a young widow who "enjoys the privileges and power that come with being at the helm of her former husband's estate, living life on her own terms with financial independence and sexual freedom."

In addition to playing Eleanor Guthrie on Black Sails between 2014 and 2017, New also portrayed Queen Leila, Princess Aurora's mother, alongside Angelina Jolie in the Disney movie Maleficent, and also starred Donald Sutherland, Hilary Swank, and Brendan Fraser on the FX series Trust.

Bridgerton season 3 focuses on Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan), a.k.a. narrator and gossip writer Lady Whistledown, and Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and is inspired by the events in Romancing Mister Bridgerton, the fourth novel in Julia Quinn's series on which the TV show is based. New's character does not appear in the books.