Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant will officially return in a new Bridget Jones’ Diary film, but without Colin Firth.
Eight years after the last installment, Bridget Jones’s Baby, it has been revealed that a sequel, Bridge Jones: Mad About The Boy, will be released.
Renee will play Bridget for the fourth time, while Hugh will return as lothario Daniel Cleaver, with Emma Thompson as Dr Rawlings.
Leo Woodall, fresh off his work on White Lotus and One Day, has joined the cast with Chiwetel Ejiofor from 12 Years a Slave.
Colin has not yet been confirmed to reprise his role as the charming Mark Darcy, who was killed off in Helen Fielding’s book series.
Unfortunately, we will have to wait until February 14, 2025 to see the film in theatres and on Peacock.
Bridget is forced to confront life as a widow in her 50s with two children following Mark’s death some years before, however it is unclear whether the film will follow that scenario.
Fans, on the other hand, were less than delighted with the prospect of continuing the film franchise without Colin on the big screen, and expressed their dismay on social media.
LostInFIlms tweeted: ‘Bridget Jones 4 without Colin Firth, yer no thanks, pointless, he’s the only reason I watched & liked the last 3 films, I like him very much [sic].’
Vic agreed: ‘There is no Bridget Jones without Mark Darcy.’
‘Bridget jones 4 is flopping because I need Daniel and Mark Darcy rematch of love triangle,’ a Twitter user known only as Katherine posted.
As Tench Wench fumed: ‘What’s the point of another Bridget Jones movie if Colin Firth isn’t in it anymore.’
The first Bridget Jones film, released in 2001, introduced us to Mark and Daniel as they struggled for Bridget’s affections, resulting in an iconic street brawl.
The second film, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, debuted three years later, with the most current installment coming out in 2016.
It concluded with Bridget finally obtaining her happy ending by marrying Mark and welcoming a newborn boy with them.
Hugh did not appear in the sequel, with his character assumed dead following an aircraft crash, but a newspaper story at the close of the film verified his survival, brilliantly setting up the next film.
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy will be available in theatres and on Peacock on February 14, 2025.
Source My Celebrity Life.