‘The Courtship’: Nicole Rémy Teases ‘Mr. Darcy/Elizabeth Complex’ in Future Episodes
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The Courtship is what happens when you mix Pride & Prejudice cosplay with The Bachelorette. The reality dating series stars Nicole Rémy as its heroine being courted by 16 eligible bachelors.
The show transports viewers back in time to Regency-era England, where no modern technology is allowed, strict rules of etiquette must be followed, and everyone must refer to the heroine as Ms. Rémy. With the support of her court, Rémy goes on romantic dates all inspired by English culture of the 19th century and the world of Jane Austen novels.
The show’s colorful costumes and instrumental covers of pop songs will remind viewers of Bridgerton, and the dynamics between the participants feels very Bachelorette. But Rémy spoke with TV Insider about how her search for love is more like Austen’s Pride & Prejudice than anything else — and it’s not just because of the show’s unique format.
The Courtship Season 1 debuted on NBC on March 6, but after just two episodes, the show was moved to USA Network, part of NBCUniversal. Looking ahead to The Courtship Episode 3, Rémy says fans can expect to see a dynamic similar to Matthew MacFadyen and Keira Knightley‘s in 2005’s Pride & Prejudice (which, naturally, is her favorite period piece).
Referencing TikTok’s favorite moment from the film — the Mr. Darcy hand flex — Rémy says there are moments like that this season that took her breath away.
“When he reaches back to grab Elizabeth’s hand? I think what’s so beautiful about that moment is it was so pure and genuine,” she says. “The connection that they have, Mr. Darcy didn’t want to admit it, but it was so strong and so real.”
“I feel like, as we watch The Courtship, that you’ll see a bit of that too,” she noted, hinting at future dating troubles. “You’ll see the guy that wasn’t able to open up. Or you’ll see me feeling like, ‘Oh my gosh, I need to continue opening up and hopefully this guy will open up to me.’ That Mr. Darcy/Elizabeth complex is something you’ll see in the show too.”
Sean Gleason/USA Network
Elizabeth Bennet was Rémy’s biggest role model going into this reality dating adventure. (The Courtship isn’t her first attempt to find love on TV: Rémy was cast in Matt James‘ season of The Bachelor but was cut shortly before filming began. She said the opportunity to be The Courtship‘s heroine fell into her lap later on.)
“What’s so amazing about [Pride & Prejudice] is that it’s such a simple love story. And what I love, too, is that Elizabeth, the main character, is so modern in the way that she approaches things, which I really appreciate. She’s kind of a trailblazer for her time. She’s independent, she’s witty, she says things and does things that women couldn’t really do back then. That’s really who I thought about throughout this whole process. I may be in Regency, but I’m a modern-day female, and so I want to bring forward those characteristics of independence and making my own decisions and being in control of my own sexuality. That was really important to me.”
A simple love story is precisely what Rémy is hoping to find through The Courtship‘s format. Ironic, considering going on national TV to fall in love seems far from simple. But Rémy says the format, the setting, and having her family and best friend there for support as her court helped her feel natural and feel that falling in love could be simple. Modern dating, for Rémy, is too complicated. Ditching the modern-day dating distractions was part of the appeal for her.
“There’s no social media, there’s no phones, there’s no technology. All of our dates are very pure and simple and really give us the opportunity to get to know each other,” she says. “We’re riding on a boat in a lake with these amazing swans and this beautiful backdrop of York, England. And in that boat, all I have are me and the other guys. It’s just very simple, and it just gives us the chance to get to know each other on a deeper level.”
However, reality show dating is a category all its own. And neither The Courtship‘s format nor her steadfast, unapologetic honesty about her feelings could save her from what so many Bachelorettes have learned: some men are there for the wrong reasons.
Sean Gleason/USA Network
“I left everything and sacrificed a lot to be part of a show. I left my job, most of my friends and family,” Rémy says. “For me, I was putting a lot on the line, and I wanted these guys to know how seriously I was taking this, because I really am looking for somebody to complete my life. And that’s exactly what I told them. I’m here for love. I’m ready to find that person. And so going through that process, if they didn’t know that, then I could’ve gotten played. Low-key, as the episodes go on, I do get fooled by a few. And nobody wants to feel like that.”
The 11 remaining Mr. Darcys don’t have to love Austen novels or Pride & Prejudice. They can even prefer Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy over MacFadyen’s (she doesn’t, but they can!), but she does expect them to open up fully.
“I don’t expect everybody to be an expert on 1820s etiquette, but I do expect you to at least try to adapt to this culture while we’re here,” she says. “It’s fun, it’s romantic, and that’s where the chivalrous connection comes in.
“That’s exactly what I said from the start,” she adds. “I said, ‘My guy, I know he’s here, because I like a guy that’s down to down.’ If you’re down to go to different countries, wear clothes you don’t normally wear, write me a love letter, that’s my guy.”
The Courtship, Wednesdays, 11 pm ET, USA Network
