Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy: Hollywood star Renée Zellweger on love, loss, and second chances

It sounds a little strange to have a friendship with a film character, but that’s what it feels like. It’s such an interesting thing for a fictional character to move through life at the same pace as the people who relate to her. To meet up with her again, to see how she’s grown, how her life has changed, how she’s dealing with challenges—there’s something universal in that. We left Bridget last time at the beginning of her happily-ever-after, and now things have not gone exactly to plan. Helen has described this as her most personal book, as she’s dealing with grief and loss. Bridget is alone, a single mother, trying to figure out what life has in store next, how to process things, and how to begin her new chapter.

It’s not a hard decision with this character that I love so much. I feel fiercely protective of her. With Bridget Jones, nobody wants to make another film just because we can—there’s always a reason to revisit her. Her experiences reflect what’s happening in the zeitgeist. It almost feels like the right time to dive back in. The world has changed so much in the nearly twenty-five years since we began this journey. It’s incredible to see how everyone has grown, changed, and to tell the story from a new perspective.

People were already in love with Bridget before we even began the film journey. That’s lucky because then it’s yours not to screw up! I had a lot of help. I started in 1999, working on the dialect process with Barbara Berkery, meeting three times a day. I also worked at Picador as Bridget Cavendish, who had done work experience in America.

A part of it. Feeling what it’s like to exist in the world as someone who wears her heart on her sleeve—vulnerable, honest, pure, authentically herself. The costumes helped too. With Bridget, she has great ideas, but execution is maybe not always 100%. That’s reflected in how she walks, rides a bike, and carries herself.

Exactly. That’s what hangs in the balance. That it’s okay to be imperfect. You can still get the guy, succeed, and be happy when you’re okay being who you are.

Always. I’m always hopeful for another reunion. It’s such a spoiled-rotten experience. I can chronicle my own life around making these films. It’s always very emotional when we get back together again—and more so when we leave.

Nerve-wracking. It’s always scary because you hope she’ll show up. She can’t be the same person, because we all evolve. What does that look like? It was a wonderful way to start, putting us back at the literal table, giving a little wink back to the beginning.

Michael’s a lovely person. I knew him socially, was a fan of his work. There’s always trepidation—will Bridget show up? But it was immediate. His kindness was a natural fit. He celebrated everyone’s process, and that’s when Bridget comes to set. It was a joyful place to work.

Yes. A comedy about grief!

No. It took me a long time to drop the accent this time. I didn’t want to. So, I’m not going to say never. As long as Bridget’s alive in Helen, I won’t say never just yet.