Renée Zellweger Says Reuniting with Colin Firth, Hugh Grant inBridget Jones: Mad About the BoyWas ‘Both Wonderful and Really Sad’

Mar. 15, 2025

From left: Colin Firth, Renée Zellweger and Hugh Grant in ‘Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason’ in 2004.Photo:Jason Bell/Universal/Studio Canal/Miramax/Kobal/Shutterstock

Jason Bell/Universal/Studio Canal/Miramax/Kobal/Shutterstock

ForRenée Zellweger, reuniting withColin FirthandHugh Granton the set ofBridget Jones: Mad About the Boywas a bittersweet experience.

At the movie’s New York City premiere on Wednesday, Feb. 12, the actress told PEOPLE in an exclusive interview that she felt a mix of emotions filming alongside her two longtime costars again for what is likely to be the final installment in the beloved franchise.

“It was both wonderful and sad,” Zellweger, 55, says, explaining, “We’ve been forging this friendship for over 25 years together. Through this journey, shared journey, Bridget Jones' journey.”

Colin Firth and Renée Zellweger in ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’.Jay Maidment/Universal Pictures

Jay Maidment/Universal Pictures

She adds that there were some “real tears” shed when the movie wrapped, especially asMad About the Boyseemingly marks the end to Bridget’s story, which first came to the big screen in 2001 with the original filmBridget Jones’s Diary.

“That’s what I understand. That’s what Colin said,” Zellweger replies when asked if she believes this truly is the last movie.

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Firth, 64, reprises his role as Bridget’s crush-turned-husband Mark Darcy, though it’s revealed in the movie’s opening that his character was killed in a humanitarian mission in Sudan four years prior. Grant, meanwhile, returns as old flame Daniel Cleaver, who joins Bridget’s friends and family in their mission to help her find her spark again in the wake of Mark’s death as she navigates the grieving process and raising the couple’s two young children on her own.

Hugh Grant and Renée Zellweger in ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’.Universal Pictures

Universal Pictures

In a separate interview with PEOPLE on Feb. 12, Zellweger noted how this chapter in Bridget’s story felt much more “emotional” than the previous ones, as Bridget was still coming to terms with her husband’s tragic death.

“But the script was so beautifully written that the emotion just sneaks up on you," she noted. “You think you’re heading in one direction that feels familiar, and then yeah, it just gets you.”

Renée Zellweger attends the New York City premiere of ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’ on Feb. 12, 2025.Dia Dipasupil/WireImage

Dia Dipasupil/WireImage

At the movie’s N.Y.C. premiere,Bridget JonesauthorHelen Fieldingaddressed fans' dismay over Mark’s death, admittingshe still feels guilty for “killing” him off. “I didn’t mean to and he’s actually still alive,” she jokes to PEOPLE.

“It was just the character that was killed, and it wasn’t my fault really. It was just what happened in the story,” she adds.

Fielding, 66, also shared how Zellweger and Grant, 64, portray their characters so wholly and vibrantly that she now has the pair in her mind when she writes the books.

“They’ve all got completely jumbled up together,” she says of the stars and their personas. “I’m really fond of all of them. And when I write Bridget now, I write for Renée."

source: people.com