Nine years after Bridget Jones’s Baby (2016), our favorite chaotic British singleton is back—but this time, life looks very different. Mad About the Boy, the fourth installment in the beloved franchise, finds Bridget (Renée Zellweger) navigating motherhood, grief, and the terrifying world of dating in her fifties. Based on Helen Fielding’s 2013 novel, the film balances the series’ signature humor with surprising emotional depth, making it one of the most mature—yet still hilarious—entries yet.
A New Chapter: Bridget as a Widow and Mother
The biggest shock? Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) is gone.
For those who read Fielding’s book, this isn’t a spoiler—Darcy’s tragic death in 2013 made tabloid headlines. But for moviegoers, the revelation lands like a gut punch. Four years after Darcy dies on a humanitarian mission in Sudan, Bridget is a single mother to two young children, Billy and Mabel (adorable newcomers Casper Knof and Mila Jankovic). Her life is a whirlwind of school runs, spilled juice, and half-finished to-do lists—but beneath the chaos, there’s grief.
Firth’s presence is fleeting, appearing only in hazy flashbacks, but his absence looms large. The film handles Bridget’s widowhood with surprising sensitivity, never reducing her to a pitiful figure. Instead, we see her stumbling forward—wine in one hand, a child’s forgotten PE kit in the other—proving that life, messy as it is, goes on.
Still Bridget, Just Older (and Funnier)
Despite the heavier themes, Mad About the Boy never loses the series’ trademark humor. If anything, it’s even raunchier.
Bridget’s friends—Shirley Henderson’s Jude, Sally Phillips’ Shazzer, and James Callis’ Tom—return with their usual blend of brutal honesty and unwavering support. Jude delivers one of the film’s best lines, warning Bridget that if she doesn’t “use it,” her vagina might “close up forever.” Naturally, this sends Bridget on a mission to rediscover her life—with gloriously awkward results.
Enter two very different love interests:
- Rockster (Leo Woodall) – A ridiculously handsome park ranger in his 30s, played with irresistible charm by One Day’s breakout star. Their May-December romance is sweet, and refreshingly free of judgment. Finally, a rom-com that lets a middle-aged woman enjoy a fling without shame!
- Mr. Wallaker (Chiwetel Ejiofor) – The stern-but-kind teacher at Billy’s school, who’s basically Darcy 2.0 (but with better sweaters). Ejiofor brings warmth and wit to the role, making him the perfect slow-burn love interest.
Of course, no Bridget Jones film would be complete without a wild card—and Hugh Grant’s Daniel Cleaver makes a riotous return. (Yes, he was technically killed off in Bridget Jones’s Baby, but since when has death stopped Daniel Cleaver?) His babysitting scenes with the kids—including teaching them how to make a “dirty bitch” cocktail—are comedy gold.
A More Empowering Bridget for 2025
Let’s be honest: some parts of Bridget Jones’s Diary haven’t aged well. The constant fat-shaming (Bridget was a UK size 12—hardly obese) and the idea that she needed a man to complete her feel outdated in 2025.
Mad About the Boy fixes that. This Bridget is confident, desirable, and unapologetic about her age. She’s not chasing love to validate herself—she’s having fun, making mistakes, and figuring it out as she goes. The film celebrates her flaws instead of mocking them, making her journey far more relatable.
That’s not to say it’s all deep introspection. There are plenty of classic Bridget mishaps:
- A disastrous condom-buying trip where she mistakes lube for hand sanitizer.
- A mortifying school meeting where Mabel loudly asks, “Mummy, what’s syphilis?”
- A dating app profile that somehow ends up set to “interested in women and men over 80.”
Renée Zellweger Shines (As Always)
Zellweger slips back into Bridget’s shoes like no time has passed. She nails the physical comedy (watching her attempt yoga is worth the ticket price alone) but also brings real depth to Bridget’s grief and growth. Whether she’s sobbing into a tub of ice cream or flirting clumsily with Rockster, she’s utterly magnetic.
Emma Thompson also steals every scene she’s in as Bridget’s hilariously blunt doctor, while Gemma Jones returns as Bridget’s eternally patient mother.
Final Verdict: A Triumphant Return
Mad About the Boy is the Bridget Jones sequel we didn’t know we needed. It’s funnier, and more emotionally rich than the last two films, proving that Bridget’s story isn’t just for twenty-somethings—it’s for anyone who’s ever fumbled their way through life.
Rating: 4.5/5
✅ Pros:
- Renée Zellweger is perfection.
- Hilarious, heartfelt, and surprisingly modern.
- Hugh Grant’s return is everything.
- Finally, a rom-com that celebrates older women!
❌ Cons:
- Some jokes rely too much on old Bridget tropes.
- The ending feels a tad rushed.
Should You Watch It?
Absolutely. Whether you’re a longtime fan or new to the chaos, Mad About the Boy is a joyful, moving, and laugh-out-loud return to form. Bring your wine and your biggest knickers—Bridget’s back, and she’s better than ever.