Hugh Grant and Renee's rocky friendship and why Colin Firth quit Bridget Jones

10 April 2024 , 09:15

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Hugh Grant is reprising his role of Daniel Cleaver for the fourth Bridget Jones movie, but Colin Firth will not be appearing alongside Renee Zellweger this time around

Renee Zellweger is set to reprise her iconic role as Bridget Jones in the fourth instalment of the much-loved film series, but with some pretty big changes to the franchise this time around.

Colin Firth, who has appeared in all three Bridget Jones films so far, won't be popping up in the fourth offering, but Hugh Grant will return - despite Bridget Jones's Baby opening with his character's funeral taking place back in 2016.

Oscar winning actress Renee, 54, first took on the role of single gal Bridget in the original movie, Bridget Jones's Diary, back in 2001. The rom-com follows the life of a 32-year-old singleton who keeps a diary detailing her desires and dreams, which take an unexpected turn when two men, played by Colin Firth and Hugh Grant, vie for her attention.

The sequel, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, hit screens in 2004, followed by Bridget Jones's Baby in 2016. The upcoming fourth film, titled Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy, is due to start filming this May. With a while to go before the fourth movie premieres, here's everything you need to know about cast drama and why Colin Firth has bowed out of the franchise...

Hugh Grant and Renee Zellweger's friendship

It's hard to imagine anybody else other than Renee playing Bridget Jones, thanks to the award-winning actress making the character her own and winning rave reviews over the course of three films, but that doesn't mean a few eyebrows weren't raised when the American actress beat British starlets for the role in 2001.

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Even Renee's co-star Hugh had some concerns about an American playing author Helen Fielding's iconic British character. Hugh, who plays Daniel Cleaver in the movies, previously admitted he first thought casting Renee in the role was "a stretch". Speaking in a 2020 documentary about the movies, Hugh recalled: "There was a whole scandal about why isn’t this a British actress? I didn’t know Renée Zellweger, and a Texan playing a British character, it did seem like a stretch."

Hugh Grant admits he was sceptical about Renee Zellweger playing Bridget Jones at first (PA)

But the two co-stars are now lifelong friends with a sweet relationship (PA)

The Notting Hill actor went on to admit his co-star's first attempt at a British accent was "good" but "sounded like Princess Margaret, which was starling." Hugh added: "She was told to kind of, well she thought she better loosen it up a bit. Then she came in and it was Princess Margaret having had a stroke. But a week later it was bang on."

Despite initial reservations about Renee's suitability for the role, it's safe to say Hugh was won over by the actress - with the pair still getting on well together and exchanging long emails. Speaking in 2020, Hugh said of their off-screen friendship: "I love Renee. She’s one of the few actresses I haven’t fallen out with. And we get on very well together. We still exchange long emails. Hers in particular, at least 70 pages each, interesting stuff, but quite hard to decipher. She’s a properly good egg and a genius. Did you see her her Judy Garland? About as good as acting gets."

Why Colin Firth won't appear in the fourth film

Bridget is back for round four, and even lothario Daniel is coming back from the dead, but Mr Mark Darcy will be nowhere to be seen when Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy becomes available to watch next year. The reason? It's pretty simple - Mark, played by Colin Firth in the movies, was killed off in the book.

Mad About The Boy, released in 2013, was set roughly four years on from the third book and saw author Helen Fielding tell Bridget's story as a widow with the small children after lawyer Mark was killed by a landmine in Sudan. Unless Colin appears via some flashback scenes, it seems we won't be getting any Mr Darcy in the new Bridget Jones film next year.

But fear not, Bridget will still have some love interests in the new movie as she navigates the dating world in her 50s. Man of the moment Leo Woodall, who recently won rave reviews for his stint in Netflix series One Day, will be popping up to compete with Daniel Cleaver for Bridget's affections. According to The Guardian, White Lotus actor Leo will play "the hot 30-year-old with whom Bridget starts sleeping as she starts dating again following her bereavement".

Zoe Delaney