Renée Zellweger hits the red carpet for the premiere of new Bridget Jones movie

It was a family reunion of sorts as two-time Academy Award winner Renee Zellweger hit the purple carpet for the Sydney premiere of her new Bridget Jones film. See all the glitz and glamour here.

It was a family reunion of sorts as two-time Academy Award winner Renee Zellweger hit the purple carpet for the Sydney premiere of Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy.

“My family is here and I am a bit messy from it because I don’t get to see them often, so I got a bit weepy,” Zellweger told The Daily Telegraph.

Members of Zellweger’s family, including her uncle, live in Woronora in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire.

Zellweger, 55, flew in to town on the latest stop of the whirlwind global tour to promote the much-hyped release of the movie this week.

“It is one of life’s great blessings,” she said of playing the titular character.

“And what a weird thing too to be sharing life’s journey in real time with a fictional character but it is very special.”

Joined by co-stars Leo Woodall, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Sally Phillips, director Michael Morris is also in town.

An excited Renee Zellweger at the Sydney premiere of Bridget Jones at the Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park.

It has been almost a decade since Bridget Jones last appeared on screen, with Mad About The Boy the fourth film outing in the franchise.

It will find Bridget (Zellweger) now widowed and back in the dating game, romancing the much younger Roxster McDuff (Woodall) and her children’s teacher, Scott Wallaker (Ejiofor).

“It is all the feelings really,” Ejiofor, who won an Oscar for 12 Years A Slave, told the Telegraph.

“I feel like it is a rollercoaster of emotions the film, in a really great way and I love that about it. Somebody said to me, ‘nothing changes, except everything’, and I think that is a really great description of this film. It is the Bridget you know and love but everything is a little different.”

Zellweger’s co-star Sally Phillips at the Australian premiere. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Woodall said: “It is incredibly special to be a part of this. Bridget Jones is one of those things that people have loved since it first came out and they have continued to feel very connected with her. She has made people feel seen in a way that other characters in cinema haven’t so it is really cool to be a part of.”

Zellweger said appearing at the premiere was an emotional experience, as several of her relatives live in Woronora in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Woodall is obviously a great actor, but he’s also a hot rising star of Hollywood right now.

He drew massive cheers of excitement as he arrived for the purple carpet.

“I keep a sense of humour about it all,” he said of the attention and swooning that follows him.

“I want people to feel the same way the other (Bridget Jones) movies have made people feel, which is you can celebrate your quirkiness and imperfections, your mistakes and you are still going to thrive and also, if you have lost someone, that it is going to be okay and you will find the right time to start the new chapter.”

The release comes just in time for fans to celebrate Bridget’s final chapter for Valentine’s Day.

The fictional character was created by British writer Helen Fielding with the first hit film – Bridget Jones’s Diary – released in 2001. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason came out in 2004 and Bridget Jones’s Baby opened in 2016.

A still from Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.

All the films have achieved big commercial success.

Phillips has played Shazza in all four.

“Every time you’re checking in with Bridget, it feels like you are checking in with your own life,” Phillips said.

“Particularly this one and it felt incredibly emotional this one because you look back over 25 years. I just feel incredibly lucky, honestly.

“Lucky me, I’ve ended up in a film with one of the greatest actresses of this age, she is amazing, and she has that extraordinary ability to open people’s hearts.”

The first look trailer of About The Boy was released in November. In it, Bridget was referred to as a “widow”. Given that she married lawyer Mark (Colin Firth) and the pair welcomed a child in the previous film, the news came as a crushing blow to some fans who had perhaps not read Fielding’s books.

Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy is in cinemas on Thursday.

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Originally published as Renée Zellweger hits the red carpet for the premiere of new Bridget Jones movie