Renée Zellweger and ‘Bridget Jones’ Cast Reunite for Statue Unveiling

Renée Zellweger is now a permanent fixture in London’s Leicester Square as a statue of her beloved character, Bridget Jones, was unveiled Monday.

Zellweger, who first played the unlucky-in-love Londoner in Bridget Jones’s Diary in 2001, was in attendance at the unveiling. Stars of the latest instalment, Mad About the Boy, also joined her: Leo Woodall, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Sally Phillips stood with Zellweger in front of the statue and posed for photos. “I think she’s much cuter than me,” Zellweger told BBC News about the sculpture, which can be seen clutching the character’s iconic diary and holding a pen.

Mad About the Boy, released on Peacock in February this year, is the fourth of the Bridget Jones series. In the U.K. and Ireland, the movie earned the best box office opening ever for a rom-com, per Universal data.

Based on the books by Helen Fielding — also photographed with Zellweger at Monday’s ceremony — the films follow chain-smoking, wine-loving Bridget Jones as she navigates personal and professional hurdles through her 30s, 40s and 50s. Colin Firth and Hugh Grant starred as her main love interests as Mark Darcy and Daniel Cleaver, respectively, with Woodall and Ejiofor entering the fray as romantic newcomers in Mad About the Boy.

Bridget Jones has become something of a national treasure in Fielding’s native Britain; not dissimilar to Harry Potter or the James Bond franchise, as the character was overdue representation for thousands of women muddling through life.

When Texan Oscar winner Zellweger took on the role, she wowed fans and critics alike with an impeccable British accent and classic Bridget charm. “I don’t think I’ll ever let go of Bridget,” Zellweger told The Hollywood Reporter when Mad About the Boy released. “I have conversations about Bridget Jones pretty much every day. I meet people on the sidewalk and they want to share about their own Bridget Jones experiences. All my friends call me Bridget!”

“I’m not alone in feeling like I relate to Bridget Jones in more ways than I’d like to admit,” she continued. “She feels very familiar to me.”

The statue is one of Leicester Square’s Scenes in the Square trail — and the first of the bunch to honor a romantic comedy. Others that feature include Paddington Bear, Mr. Bean, Harry Potter as well as the Iron Throne from Game of Thrones.