Ruby Barker became famous with her role in “Bridgerton”. But for the actress, filming was primarily a psychological journey through hell. Now she is making allegations against Netflix and the production company ShondaLand.
Ruby Barker was last seen in the second season of the Netflix series “Bridgerton” in 2022, and since then things have been quiet about the 26-year-old. Not without reason, as she now explains in an interview. Barker is said to have suffered from progressively worsening mental breakdowns while filming the first and second seasons of the hit series. Now the actress is making allegations against the production companies Netflix and ShondaLand, which she says have “let her down.”
“Bridgerton” actress Ruby Barker: “It was really torture for me”
In “The LOAF ” Barker spoke out again for the first time after months of withdrawal – and describes what happened to her on the set of the last two “Bridgerton” seasons. She accuses the production of hiding her problems so as not to damage the series’ image. “When I went to the hospital a week after filming the first season of ‘Bridgerton,’ everything was covered up and kept secret because the show was about to come out,” she says. Because during the previous filming, her mental state deteriorated immensely. “It was really torture for me because my character was very alienated, very excluded and on his own in these terrible circumstances,” Barker describes. During this time, no one inquired about her condition nor offered her any support.
She points out, “Not a single person from Netflix or ShondaLand has contacted me or even emailed me to ask if I was OK or if I could benefit from any kind of follow-up care or support. Nobody.” Her condition continued to worsen on set because she felt so isolated. She explains: “My life changed drastically overnight and yet there was no support – and there was none afterwards either.” She tried to act like nothing happened and just move on, a mistake that resulted in two nervous breakdowns.
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Barker spoke about her mental problems on Instagram last year. She made her anxiety and eating disorder public for the first time with an emotional Instagram video and emphasized that she had sought mental health treatment because of it. “I started having panic attacks at the thought of setting foot in a gym, I pretended I wasn’t out of breath after climbing stairs and ran to the toilet to catch myself, I starved myself all day, then “I ate, I ate, I ate, felt like crap and did the whole thing again,” she said. Her hospital stay was also “skillfully covered up and kept secret” so as not to endanger the success of the series.
Support from fellow actress Claudia Jessie
Even though she lacked support from the production company, there were people on set who were there for her. 2022 thanked “Bridgerton” actress Claudia Jessie, who plays the role of Phoebe Dynevor, on Instagram. “She told me to turn a coin over: it might be dull on one side, but if you turn the coin over, you’ll find that it’s shiny on the other side,” she reported at the time.
In “Bridgerton,” Barker played the role of Marina Thompson, who became engaged to Colin Bridgerton but was pregnant by another man.
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Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
