Bridget Jones 4 confirmed! Renée Zellweger officially returning in fourth installment - and will be joined by Hugh Grant and a hunk from The White Lotus

Bridget Jones 4 has been officially confirmed - with Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant set to reprise their iconic roles.

The fourth instalment in the acclaimed franchise - based on the books by Helen Fielding - will be titled Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy - with Zellweger returning as the witty singleton, alongside Grant as loverat Daniel Cleaver. The Mail On Sunday confirmed the movie will begin filming in May.

Emma Thompson - who played Doctor Rawlings in 2016's Bridget Jones’s Baby is also back, with Chiwetel Ejiofor and White Lotus and One Day star Leo Woodall also set to star, per THR.

To Leslie director Michael Morris will helm the film - based on the 2013 novel of the same name, with the film's script penned by author Fielding.

It is not known if Mark Darcy actor Colin Firth will appear in any capacity - his character was revealed to have been killed off in the novel - with Mad About The Boy following Jones as a single mother of two navigating the dating scene, apps, and an age-gap romance.

Bridget Jones 4 has been officially confirmed - with Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant set to reprise their iconic roles. Pictured,  Zellwegger as Bridget Jones

The fourth instalment in the acclaimed franchise - based on the books by Helen Fielding - will be titled Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy - with Zellweger returning as the witty singleton, alongside Grant as Daniel Cleaver - Colin Firth's Mark Darcy has been killed off(pictured 2004)

Universal will release the film on Peacock on Valentine’s Day 2025 while internationally it will be released in theaters. 

A movie source told The Mail On Sunday in February: 'Bridget is back and is about to take over London. Filming is being mapped out already and all of the pre- production is in place.

'There was some uncertainty about whether it would get off the ground, but the movie is coming.

'Renee is excited about bringing Bridget back. She adores the character so much. Bridget Jones fever is expected to sweep across London this spring.' 

The most recent film, released in 2016, saw Bridget shocked when she found out she was pregnant. 

It ended with her marrying Mark, the high-flying lawyer who she'd had on and off feelings for across the three movies. It was also revealed that he was the father to her baby.

Grant didn't appear in that movie as Cleaver was presumed dead at the beginning. At the end, though, there was a newspaper report that said he had been found alive.

A book based on that story was published after the film, and after the Mad About The Boy novel, although it was set earlier. And in Mad About The Boy, Mark Darcy is dead, leaving Jones as a widow, although it is not known if the movie will be faithful to that.

White Lotus and One Day star Leo Woodall is also set to star

Chiwetel Ejiofor will star in the film set for release on Valentine's Day 2025

The most recent film, released in 2016, saw Bridget shocked when she found out she was pregnant. It ended with her marrying Mark, the high-flying lawyer who she'd had on and off feelings for across the three movies. It was also revealed that he was the father to her baby 

The first film, Bridget Jones's Diary, came out in 2001 and grossed £222 million at the box office – more than ten times what it cost to make

When asked about a fourth movie instalment, Fielding previously told Radio Times: 'Every film that gets made is a miracle. I think it's really difficult to make films and to make them happen and to make them good and we want it to be really good. But I really hope so. I'd love to see it on the screen.'

There were rumours last year the movie had been axed due to the US actors' strikes, but sources said those claims were 'nonsense'.

The first film, Bridget Jones's Diary, came out in 2001 and grossed £222 million at the box office – more than ten times what it cost to make. Ms Zellweger's last film was the 2019 biopic of Judy Garland.