The New ‘Bridget Jones’ Movie Is Totally Worth That Peacock Subscription

It’s a surprising admission from a director best known for directing more serious fare in his career, but that’s a good thing. As a result, the film is emotional without being manipulative, witty and smart, and above all, sends Bridget Jones off on the right note. “This is a film that I feel like has the opportunity to touch on things that we don’t often get to touch on in any film, let alone in a story/rom-com franchise,” he says.

It’s also why Morris says big names like Grant, Firth, Thompson, Broadbent, and more wanted to make sure they were available to come back. “Almost everybody in this was also doing other projects,” he says. “It speaks to the love people have for the franchise. No one wanted to let the last Bridget Jones happen without them being part of it.”

You’ll be happy to know that the new cast more than delivers, especially Bridget Jones’s kids, Billy (played by Casper Knopf) and Mabel (played by Mila Jankovic). “Casper embodies something absolutely Colin Firth-esque about him, especially the way he carries himself,” Morris says. “We talked a lot about how Colin is in the first film, and Casper’s able to do that, which is a very uncommon for young actor. And Mila is one of the few children I’ve ever worked with who isn’t trying to ever be cute or say anything cutely. She’s just her. That to me is so Bridget.”

Casting aside, it’s the various messages in the film that will resonate, from the grief of losing a loved one, to aging, to what happens when you listen to everyone’s well-meaning advice.

“I think the most powerful thread in this to me is how easy it is to lock yourself away when something awful happens and how easy it is to sort of say, ‘No, my basement is a big enough world for me now. That’s all I need. Fine,’” Morris says. “And how actually, what we need to do is to find our own way to respect the thing that we’ve lost and never forget it. Keep it with us, but allow us to absorb it and step back into the world.”