The Other Bennet Sister Deserves An Emmy In Forearm Acting

More than 20 years on, the “Mr. Darcy hand flex” refers to a moment of romantic tension so iconic that its mere mention is enough to activate a legion of IYKYK Pride and Prejudice stans. It’s not hard to imagine that two decades from now, “Tom Hayward forearm scene” from The Other Bennet Sister will have the same effect.

Streaming now, the new BritBox series envisions Mary Bennet (Ella Bruccoleri) from Pride and Prejudice as the main character of her own adventure. After her sisters marry off and leave home, Mary heads to London to serve as a governess for her aunt and uncle, the Gardiners, where, in Episode 3, she gets settled and makes the acquaintance of a family friend, Tom Hayward (Dónal Finn).

As the family enjoys a game of graces, Tom rips his jacket after stretching to catch a hoop. He slips out of the torn outer layer, revealing a vest and a billowy white shirt, which he rolls up the sleeves of for better gameplay. Mary can’t help but admire what she’s seeing, even smiling to herself as music swells, only to be hilariously cut off as Mr. Gardiner interrupts her gaze.

But The Other Bennet Sister doesn’t leave Mary — or viewers — hanging for long. On a separate afternoon, Tom returns to the Gardiners’ home to find Mary practicing the game by herself. He sweetly offers to play with her, but preemptively takes off his jacket and hitches up his sleeves: lucky for Mary, a task that takes even longer the second time. That hopeful, rising music returns as she averts her entire body, intuiting that this is something she probably shouldn’t watch. And yet she must, swiveling her head around to sneak an extended peek.

The camera lingers on a close-up of Tom’s forearms before he pats the fabric into place, takes his glasses off, and smiles at a flustered Mary. It’s no wonder she was so transfixed. Forearms are the best!

Not as showy as biceps, their muscular charm sneaks up on you in a gentle way. Across cinema and IRL, the best forearm moments almost invariably accompany a rolling up of sleeves. Anyone can flaunt a forearm in a t-shirt, but the real excitement lies in the build-up of the reveal: that almost athletic sense of getting down to business, whether it’s chopping onions for dinner or engaging in an impromptu game of graces.

That this particular scene is going down in such a buttoned-up time in history only makes it that much more titillating. When I recently asked Finn if he thought Tom’s sleeve work was at all intentional, he wasn’t quite convinced, suggesting instead that it’s more impactful that Tom has no idea the effect he’s having on Mary. As he explains: “It’s the unassuming nature that people respond to.”

And responding, they are! As put forth by several viral TikToks, fans seem to find the moment — and Mary’s reaction to it — downright sultry.

While the wooing can come later, at this point in the pair’s friendship, the swoony scene has much more to do with Mary’s own journey of self-discovery. This is the first time she’s really on her own, away from a family home where the other Bennets’ indifference (and sometimes outright derision) chipped away at her sense of self. Taking a second (or... 30) to appreciate a handsome man rolling up his sleeves — and to play with her, no less! — is a small but significant exercise in agency at a time when she feels like she has very little.

Bruccoleri’s curious, attentive gaze perfectly captures the thrill of a budding crush, which, as professional crush-havers know, is as much about the admirer as the admiree. In the moment, Mary might simply be enjoying a pleasant view. But it’s only the germ of a greater awakening — that her desire is a worthy thing, and that she’s allowed to imagine a wonderful life for herself. Sure, maybe one that includes a kind and gorgeous partner.