Bridgerton has found its newest leading lady, and she carries a remarkable artistic legacy. Australian actress Yerin Ha takes on the role of Sophie Baek, the love interest for Benedict Bridgerton in the show’s upcoming fourth season. Her path to this iconic role is a compelling story of talent and heritage. She is the granddaughter of famous South Korean actress and former politician Son Sook. The news was officially announced in August 2024, and filming has taken place in London. For many fans, Yerin Ha seemed to arrive on the scene as a new face, but her journey to this breakout role began years ago, shaped by her family’s deep connection to the performing arts and her own dedication across continents.
Yerin Ha’s Family and Artistic Heritage
Acting talent runs deep in Yerin Ha’s family. Her grandmother is the renowned South Korean actress Son Sook. Son Sook has had a storied career spanning decades in Korean stage, television, and film, with roles in popular series like My Mister and The Glory, and she also served as South Korea’s Minister of Environment in 1999. This artistic influence didn’t stop there. Ha’s parents met while attending drama school in Korea, meaning Yerin was surrounded by a love for performance from the very beginning.
Her grandmother has spoken publicly about her pride in Yerin’s achievements. Appearing on the Korean talk show You Quiz on the Block in early 2025, Son Sook discussed her granddaughter’s casting in Bridgerton. She proudly shared that Yerin earned the role through an audition process. With characteristic humility and praise, the veteran actress even said, “Looks like she’s a better actress than me”.
“My granddaughter managed to get that role after participating in the audition… Looks like she’s a better actress than me,” Son Sook said about Yerin’s Bridgerton casting.
Yerin Ha was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1998 and grew up on the city’s North Shore. While she was inspired by her grandmother’s work from a young age, she initially thought a career in acting would be difficult in Australia due to the lack of Asian representation she saw on local television at the time. On her parents’ advice, she moved to Seoul at the age of 15 to pursue formal training. She attended the prestigious Kaywon High School of Arts for three years, immersing herself in performing arts education.
She later returned to Australia to study at one of the world’s leading drama schools, the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney. She graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting, majoring in Musical Theatre. Her professional stage debut came swiftly in 2019 with the Sydney Theatre Company’s production of Lord of the Flies, where she played the role of Maurice.
Yerin Ha’s Career Before Bridgerton
Yerin Ha’s career was already on an impressive upward trajectory long before she received the call for Bridgerton. Her television debut came in 2019 with a recurring role in the series Reef Break. However, her major international breakthrough arrived in 2022 when she was cast as Kwan Ha, a new character created for the Paramount+ television adaptation of the video game Halo. The series, produced by Steven Spielberg, premiered that year and featured Ha in a main role across two seasons.
She quickly became a recognizable face in Australian television, taking on the main role of Ah Rah in the ABC crime drama Troppo in 2022. In 2023, she starred as Alice in the psychological drama miniseries Bad Behaviour for Stan, a performance that earned her a nomination for Most Outstanding Supporting Actress at the Australian Logie Awards.
Her work in major international franchises continued to grow. In 2024, she appeared in the HBO series Dune: Prophecy, a prequel to the Dune films, playing the younger version of the character Kasha. She also starred in the 2025 Netflix mystery series The Survivors as Mia Chang. Alongside her screen work, Ha maintained her love for theatre. In 2025, she performed on the West End in London in a production of Jean Genet’s The Maids at the Donmar Warehouse.
Becoming Sophie Baek in Bridgerton Season 4
In August 2024, the exciting news broke that Yerin Ha had been cast as the female lead in the fourth season of Netflix’s global phenomenon, Bridgerton. She will play Sophie Baek, the love interest of Benedict Bridgerton, portrayed by Luke Thompson. The season is based on the third book in Julia Quinn’s series, An Offer from a Gentleman, which tells a Cinderella-inspired story. In a meaningful adaptation, the character’s surname was changed from the book’s “Beckett” to “Baek” to honor Ha’s Korean heritage.
In the story, Sophie is described as a maid—a woman of hard work and self-reliance whose life experiences place her far outside the expectations of London’s high society, known as “the ton”. She and Benedict share a spark after a chance meeting at a masquerade ball, and their connection forces them both to rethink their worlds.
For Ha, landing this role was an emotional moment. She shared that she was on holiday with her mother in Seoul’s Gangnam district when she received the news. “I cried on the streets of Gangnam,” she recalled. Her mother has been a constant source of support throughout the process, present from the initial audition to the final celebratory announcement.
“I was told I got the role and I started screaming. My mum came out crying because she could tell that I got it,” Ha shared about the moment she learned she would star in Bridgerton.
Stepping into a show of this scale came with pressure. Ha acknowledged this, noting the responsibility of being the show’s first East Asian romantic lead (following Simone Ashley, who was the first South Asian lead in Season 2). Her focus remained on the work. “Through a good performance, people will be able to realize, yes, we deserve and belong in these spaces,” she stated. She described the nine-month filming process in London as an intense and special experience, marked by a strong sense of collaboration with the cast and crew.
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Where to watch Bridgerton Season 4 and what’s next for Yerin Ha
Bridgerton Season 4 will be released in two parts. The first part of episodes will be available on Netflix on January 29, 2026. The second part will follow on February 26, 2026. The season is currently one of the most anticipated releases on the streaming platform.
While Bridgerton is set to be her most prominent role to date, Yerin Ha’s career continues to expand. Following her West End theatre run in The Maids, she is expected to take on new projects that will build on her growing international profile. From her early days training in Seoul and Sydney to starring in one of the world’s biggest television series, Yerin Ha’s journey is a blend of personal heritage and global ambition, making her a standout star to watch.
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