Why is Colin Bridgerton wearing a Gritty T-shirt? The internet wants to know.
"Bridgerton" heartthrob Luke Newton was spotted in a behind-the-scenes photo repping an elusive promotional Gritty T-shirt. Where did he get it? Why does he have it?
Is Colin Bridgerton a confirmed Gritty fan?
Bridgerton heartthrob Luke Newton was spotted in a behind-the-scenes photo from filming season 3 of the popular Netflix series wearing a special T-shirt.
While reviewing a script, Newton could be seen sporting a Philadelphia Flyers Gritty T-shirt — and it’s a pretty random one at that.
As eagle-eyed fans spotted, Newton was wearing a “Gritty Snax” shirt the Flyers distributed as an in-arena giveaway back in 2022 to promote the then-new mobile game of the same title. The graphic depicts Gritty resembling Pac-Man and chowing down on arena concessions.
On X (formerly Twitter), a user who goes by Syd, was among the first to make the connection.
“Anyone care to explain to me why Colin Bridgerton is wearing a Gritty T-shirt?” she asked, adding, “the absolute gag is I have the shirt because it was given away at ONE singular game a couple years ago. So I’m not sure if he was literally there or if he’s just a huge Gritty guy and found it on eBay or something.”
Over the years, the shirts have popped up on resale sites. Three are listed on eBay as of publication time, ranging in price from $16 to $20 if you’d like the opportunity to match Newton.
Now, the tweet has been viewed more than 120,000 times, sparking colliding comments from Bridgerton and Flyers fans (and just general Gritty fans, of which there are plenty).
“Gritty transcends time and space,” one user wrote. “As a Philadelphian in London I am loving this,” said another. “I’ve been struggling to get into the new season but I’ll give it another try now for a fan of Gritty,” offered a third.
And, as to be predicted, the T-shirt-making drop shippers who act fast to copy popular designs are also getting in on the mix. The Inquirer already found one listing for an “Official Colin Bridgerton-Coded Shirt” that includes a low-quality copy of the original graphic.
As for how this all happened, details remain fuzzy.
The Flyers confirmed their team found out about Newton’s T-shirt the same way the rest of the internet did: through social media posts. They have no idea how the shirt made its way across the pond, but called the news exciting.
Newton is an English actor and has no obvious ties to Philadelphia or the hockey franchise.
The Inquirer has reached out to Netflix for comment. This story will be updated if we hear back, or get any closer to solving this fuzzy orange mystery ourselves.