Renée Zellweger on Bridget Jones Return, Colin Firth’s Absence

As the world prepares to wave goodbye — at least, for now — to Bridget Jones, maybe no one will miss her more than Renée Zellweger.

“I don’t think I’ll ever let go of Bridget,” the star tells The Hollywood Reporter (no shred of her impeccable British accent discernible — a Texan through and through).

Bridget Jones first landed on our screens nearly 25 years ago in Bridget Jones’s Diary when Zellweger embodied Helen Fielding’s titular protagonist like the character had been written for her. The movie was based on Fielding’s first book of the same name, which was an instant ’90s hit and sold over two million copies worldwide by 2006.

In its 2001 film adaptation, Zellweger fell headfirst into life as a London girl and audiences around the globe fell in love with a verbally incontinent spinster who drinks like a fish, smokes like a chimney and dresses like her mother. She reprised her role in 2004’s Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason and 2016’s Bridget Jones’s Baby, of course, finally solidifying her fairytale ending with Colin Firth‘s stiff, reserved Mark Darcy in favor of Hugh Grant’s outrageous and smutty minded Daniel Cleaver.

It was a role that earned Zellweger her first Oscar nomination in 2002. What was clear was that Jones, as ham-fisted and troublesome as she was, translated overseas. Bridget Jones was a star, and it was only right that she return for a final outing in Michael Morris’ Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.

Streaming exclusively on Peacock Feb. 13, the new film follows Bridget wrestling with grief four years after Mark was killed while on a humanitarian trip in Sudan. It’s made all the more challenging by their two children, Billy and Mabel, who are fast growing up in a world without their father.

Thankfully, as Bridget pledges to live life to the fullest once more, a dashing 29-year-old named Roxster (Leo Woodall) comes along and gives her a summer of pure distraction. Elsewhere, the chemistry between science teacher Mr. Wallaker (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Bridget is only getting more electric, and Zellweger’s character comes to understand that life isn’t something she can do alone. Even if, in the wake of Mark’s death, she wants to be able to. Grant’s Daniel Cleaver, who definitively did not die in a plane crash as suggested in Bridget Jones’ Baby (2016), is as deliciously naughty as ever. The likes of Emma Thompson, Shirley Henderson, Sally Phillips, James Callis, Celia Imrie, Gemma Jones, Jim Broadbent and Sarah Solemani also return, joining newbies Woodall and Ejiofor.

“Roxster is a lot more front-footed and honest about how he feels from the start,” Woodall teases to THR about his character. “He’s very flirtatious with her. He’s a go-getter.” Ejiofor chimes in on what Wallaker brings to the table: “I think she sees in him the sensitivity and the care that he takes as an educator… Even though he finds Bridget, I think, initially very chaotic and the world around her is a bit destabilizing, he does come to understand the inherent values of those things.”

So, it’s another battle of the boys for Bridget (we’re not complaining). THR spoke to the three stars of Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy about age gaps, ghosting and how Zellweger approached a grieving Bridget: “Is she a little more measured? Probably. Does she have time to worry so much about herself? Not as much. But familiarly, she is concerned about if she’s measuring up. And we all relate to that.”

Let’s go all the way back to 2001 when you were cast as Bridget Jones. Had you read any Helen Fielding? Did you know who Bridget Jones even was?

ZELLWEGER You know, what’s so funny about that is that I don’t remember if I did because it’s all become such a blur. I remember hearing that there was this sensational new book and I remember talking about that, but I don’t remember knowing that there was going to be a film made. Then I got this phone call to go to England and meet some people — to have a conversation.

And here we are now, 25 years later. It’s so rare that you want to revisit the adapted films just as much as you want to revisit the books, but you were the perfect Bridget for everyone. From day one. How much of Bridget is Helen, and how much is Renée and your own interpretation?

ZELLWEGER Oh, my goodness, that’s a really hard question. I don’t know if I could answer that. I mean, I’m not alone in feeling like I relate to Bridget Jones in more ways than I’d like to admit. She feels very familiar to me. So it would be hard to say. Maybe I just, very luckily, share a lot in common with Helen Fielding. I do think we have similar senses of humor. Maybe that’s it.

What will you miss the most about Bridget?

ZELLWEGER I’ll miss spending time with everyone that’s involved, friendships new and old. I don’t think I’ll ever let go of Bridget. I have conversations about Bridget Jones pretty much every day. I meet people on the sidewalk and they want to share about their own Bridget Jones experiences. All my friends call me Bridget!

Leo, Chiwetel, you two land these major roles in the final chapter of Bridget’s story… Do you remember watching those first two films when they came out in 2001 and 2004? Did they have any sort of impact on you?

EJIOFOR A huge impact. I love the Bridget Jones films. Back then, I wasn’t familiar with the book. I mean, I’d heard of the book, I guess, but I hadn’t read it. But I was caught up in the excitement about watching the film and loved it. It’s obviously a film that appeals a lot to women, but it also appeals to a huge amount of guys — Bridget’s personality and her optimism, the way she’s spinning all of these plates but somehow finding her way through. And then there are great parts written for guys in the films as well. Obviously Daniel and Mark are just iconic characters and their relationship and their tussles are amazing. So being involved in that world in any way was really exciting.

Leo, how old were you when you first encountered Bridget?

WOODALL I didn’t realize until this promotional period that I was four years old! That’s the number that’s been chucked out. I don’t remember when it was first released into the world, but I grew up with Bridget always being around. And I watch them every Christmas.

Oh it’s such a Christmas film, with the turkey dinners.

WOODALL The turkey curries, yeah — which I’ve never actually had. So it’s very surreal to be a part of it.

Do either of you have a favorite scene from those first two films that has stayed with you?

EJIOFOR Oh, I’ve got tons of moments. I don’t know why this is constantly coming back to me: the overcoat. [In Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason] when the coat is too big. [Laughs.] I think it’s maybe because of the delivery of it when Colin just says, “Wrong coat.”

So good. “That’s not your coat.”

EJIOFOR It’s brilliant. I love the fight as well. [Woodall makes noises of agreement.] The fight’s amazing. There’s just so many.

Renée, you’ve played a Brit so convincingly for 25 years. Are there any parts of British culture that’s infiltrated your Texan life?

ZELLWEGER Oh yes, absolutely. I have some new staples in the diet. [Laughs.] There’s a bit of language that I use regularly. Yeah, I’m pretty familiar with different corners of the country, I have friends all over the place now.

WOODALL We did a quiz the other day — we quizzed her British culture knowledge. It was astounding.

EJIOFOR It was very impressive.

WOODALL We were definitely suspicious that she cheated.

ZELLWEGER I might have been cheating. [The other two erupt laughing.]

WOODALL There it is!

ZELLWEGER Or, I mean, in a quarter of a century, you might learn how to make tea.

What kind of questions were on this quiz?

WOODALL There was tea, some slang… Chinwag came up.

We know what a Chinwag is. We’re having one right now. Is there anything you do that helps you to snap back into Bridget?

ZELLWEGER Oh, no, there’s no snapping. There are elements of the experience that are very familiar at this point, but it’s always a rediscovery. I guess it begins with landing in London, hopping in the car with Tricky Dicky, my pal, and starting to fake an accent.

It’s such a good accent though. Of all the Americans who have done a British accent in films ever, it must be top five.

WOODALL Maybe number one.

With you two, Leo, Chiwetel, you nab these roles as Roxster and Mr. Wallaker — did you then go and devour the books? What research followed?

EJIOFOR I just went back to the films, really. They’re so different [to Mark and Daniel]. They’re really interesting and funny but they are completely new kinds of guys and Daniel and Mark are just irreplaceable. I thought the scripts were really brilliantly written. I thought that it was really funny but also really emotional. And I thought that Wallaker was a brilliant part. I just connected to him, I just loved the guy. You know — he’s a little uptight to begin with. [Laughs.] But I just thought there was such a rich subtext to him and and there were things that we learn about him that I thought were really endearing and engaging. So that was it for me, just really trying to grapple with and come to terms with and understand this guy and his relationship with Bridget, how they understand each other and also his relationship to being an educator and therefore to Bridget’s children, Billy especially, the challenges that are going through the family.

WOODALL I also liked Roxster. I think he’s a guy that you want to be around. Coming at it from an actor’s perspective, I knew that it was gonna just be a lot of fun. In the past, I’ve played some roles that have to go to a very dark place or [I have to] be very serious about, and I knew that coming to do this, it was gonna be very relaxing once I’d gotten over the first day scaries. I learned how to dive and climb a tree and got to hang out with Renée and be cheerful for a day.

You both have different flirtations and relationships with Bridget in this. How would you describe your respective connection to her?

WOODALL I think maybe a way that they’re very different, Wallaker and Roxster. Roxster is a lot more front-footed and honest about how he feels from the start. He’s very flirtatious with her and allows his smile for her to come through. He’s a go-getter. I think they establish a connection very early. There’s a spark and they go for it. It’s very playful and sweet.

EJIOFOR. Yeah. I think Mr. Wallaker is quite uptight. When we meet him, his whistle is very important to him and actually, [the whistle] became quite important to me on set. I enjoyed that. [Ejiofor’s character is a science teacher who frequently uses a whistle to herd all the children.]

ZELLWEGER [Laughing.] Even on his days off.

EJIOFOR Yeah, around Hampstead, driving people crazy with the whistle until it was bunged up and stopped by the sound department. But you know, he’s somebody who’s actually quite attentive and very engaged with people. Even though he finds Bridget, I think, initially very chaotic and the world around her is a bit destabilizing, he does come to understand the inherent values of those things. I also think that she sees in him the sensitivity and the care that he takes as an educator, and how seriously he takes that responsibility of being within the lives of these young people. I think both of these characters [Wallaker and Roxster], they’re able to be quite emotional and talk about their feelings in a way that I think is still kind of rare. It’s great within a film like this, to be able to have male characters who can show those degrees of sensitivity and the modern man.

The age gap between Roxster is ultimately their undoing, though. I wanted to put that to you guys.

WOODALL One thing that was interesting, I think at least from discussions with Michael [Morris] and what needed to be got across, is that it’s not actually necessarily that the age gap itself is their undoing. It’s more Roxster’s slight lack of maturity at the very crucial time and his decision-making that can maybe convince her that it’s not right. I don’t know. [To Zellweger], what do you think?

ZELLWEGER Well, it’s also interesting, because as you were talking about that just now, I was wondering if it’s not an interesting look at the caving to societal pressures in a different way. Like, you have an idea about what you’re supposed to be and what you’re supposed to establish in your life and what your relationships should look like. The messaging has been there since time immemorial. And through his character, it’s an interesting way of subverting the notion and having it be that there’s this young man who feels like, ‘Oh, obviously this is wrong and obviously this is for now.’ But it begs the question, ‘Why?’ I guess the way that I looked at it was also about decision-making and where you are at a particular point in your life, not necessarily about a number.

I have to ask… Is ghosting ever acceptable?

ZELLWEGER Yes! Because some [people] are crazy! [Laughs.]

WOODALL Yeah. I mean, would it be still classed as ghosting if it’s more for self-protection?

ZELLWEGER [Laughing.] Yeah. Safety issues…

WOODALL I mean, it’s probably very rare that it would be acceptable.

EJIOFOR Well, sometimes it’s necessary. Ghosting in the face of stalking is [fine] but it is an extreme response. I think ghosting is never a good thing if it’s just in a normal capacity. If it’s avoiding having a break-up conversation or just setting somebody straight then obviously it’s horrible.

ZELLWEGER Yeah, that’s a cop-out. Definitely.

I really want to ask: This movie is full of humor — it’s classic Bridget and all the joy we’ve received from every other film — but it’s also full of sadness, I think, more than the others. She’s Bridget, but she’s now a widow. Renée, did that shift your approach to playing Bridget, maybe tonally?

ZELLWEGER Oh, sure. I mean, in every [movie], there’s a revisitation of who she’s become based on what’s happened to her in the interim. And that’s no different here. I think it was necessary that we were going to look at themes that were of greater consequence in the life of a person in this stage of her life — in order for it to be an authentic representation. This is Helen at her most personal and she’s opening herself up to share her experiences of loss and grief and that of her children as well. What does that look like? How does that change a person? You’re never the same after you experience loss. How does that manifest? Your perspective changes, your values change… How you communicate and what you want in your life inevitably changes as well. And now we’re talking about a mother so her choices don’t just affect her anymore. So is she a little more measured? Probably. Does she have time to worry so much about herself? Not as much. But familiarly, she is concerned about if she’s measuring up. And we all relate to that.

Very well put. Did you miss Colin on set?

ZELLWEGER Now, that was a real surprise. I knew that it would be emotional, but I didn’t realize just how sad I was gonna feel on the day, looking at my friend on the sidewalk there in his Mark Darcy coat with his Mark Darcy buttoned-up suit and his briefcase, strolling in the London night. It was just so sad thinking this character I love, and Mark and Bridget, was no more. But just as my friend, I’ve shared this experience with [Firth] for 25 years, and that was coming to an end. That really snuck up on me in a really heavy way.

Could you maybe choose what you think is the most romantic scene in all of Bridget Jones’ films?

ZELLWEGER I’m not playing this game. I know better… Oh, I know the answer. Ready? When mum comes back. After running around with Julian [in Bridget Jones’s Diary] and she gives Dad the big squeeze. It’s gorgeous.

Jim and Gemma! Oh they’re so sweet. Okay: is there a universe in which Bridget and Daniel end up together?

ZELLWEGER I mean, I hope so. In what capacity? I don’t know. I don’t want to give any spoilers, I think that their relationship and how it’s evolved is really beautiful. It’s a really truthful portrayal of what happens in a life journey with friendship, right? It’s sometimes the least likely person who ends up being your tried and true. I love that about their dynamic. I don’t know that I would want to change that.

Finally, then, who out of the cast is first to jump in and save a drowning dog?

WOODALL Well, technically, it’s me.

ZELLWEGER [Erupts laughing again.]

EJIOFOR I think we’d be racing each other, throwing each other out of the way to try and get in.

WOODALL [To Zellweger] With your love for dogs, I think you would. You would be in the pool before the dog even gets there. You’d have a spidey sense that something bad would happen to a dog.

ZELLWEGER There’d be no dog in the pool. The dog would be kidnapped. The dog would be safely in the car already.

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy is streaming exclusively on Peacock in the U.S. on Thursday, Feb. 13 and is released in international theaters on Feb. 12.