Bridget Jones May Be the Best Movie Franchise We Have

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This Week

My BFF Bridget Jones is back.

An unlikely, hilarious soap opera.

A juicy SNL-Taylor Swift story.

A juicy Marvel mayhem story.

Meet my Valentine.

Thank God for the Bridget Jones Movies

The best kind of visit with an old friend is one that feels like, no matter how much time has passed, you still really, truly know each other. And while I know that, technically speaking, Bridget Jones is not a real person, she is real to me. So it was quite meaningful to catch up with her in the utterly lovely new film Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.

The fourth entry in the Renée Zellweger-led rom-com franchise takes place eight year after the events of Bridget Jones’ Baby, the monumental update in the saga of the charmingly, relatably, hapless-in-love British romantic in which, as the title suggests, Bridget Jones has a baby.

In fact, in Mad About the Boy, Bridget has two children, who she is struggling to raise alone following the death of her husband, Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy. (This is only a spoiler if you have not watched, like, 10 seconds of the film’s trailer, read the logline, seen the movie poster, or invested two brain cells if trying to find out what the film is about.) Suffice it to say, it’s a heck of a time to reunite with our ol’ pal Bridge. And, it turns out, we needed her as much as she needed us.

Mad About the Boy is now available to stream on Peacock, should you be someone staring down the barrel of a Valentine’s night alone with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, a bottle of wine, and a jumbo-sized box of Kleenex. (Certainly, I’m not talking about myself and my plans here. No sir. No ma’am.)

Once again based on a book by Helen Fielding, whose series the entire franchise is adapted from, it’s a film that acknowledges that sadness and joy lead us through life hand-in-hand. The never-ending maelstrom of chaos and uncertainty may be overwhelming, but there’s lessons to be learned and hope to be found if you can stand still long enough to soak in the rays of sunshine that do, always, peek through.

Bridget’s insecurities have evolved beyond her weight, flirting skills, and vices like smoking. (To be clear, I’m not dismissing those anxieties, which are very real and potentially crushing—and why this whole franchise is such a smash with people who feel seen by her.) Several years after Mr. Darcy was killed in Sudan—he was, remember, a humanitarian lawyer—Bridget has moved to a stage of grief that resembles worry as much as it does mourning: Is she, alone, enough of a parent for her two kids? Will they be OK?

A parade of familiar faces show up, each one an absolute delight to see again: Her trio of best friends (Sally Phillips, Shirley Henderson, and James Callis); her mom (Gemma Jones); her TV host co-workers (Sarah Solemani and Josette Simon); and even her gynecologist, who now functions as more of a therapist, played by Emma Thompson. They’re all empathetic towards Bridget’s pain and loss, of course, but they’re also desperate for her to move on. Specifically, they think she should start dating and having sex again, lest—as multiple warn—her vagina fuses together.

Her former cad lover, who is now an adorably doting “uncle” to her children, Hugh Grant’s Daniel, is surprisingly the wisest. He understands loss, and he certainly understands horniness. He also knows Bridget deeply, and is able to reassure her that she will always be enough for her children, that—even if there are some roadblocks along the way—they are going to be OK, and that she may even be a better mother for them if she lets herself look after her own happiness, too. And just maybe that means having a good shag.

What follows is Bridget’s adventures—and, often, misadventures—as she opens herself up to romance again at this point in her life. A hilarious meet-cute has her fall in the arms, literally, of a younger man, Roxster—a character name chosen presumably because it sounds like “rock star,” which The White Lotushunk Leo Woodhall who plays him certainly resembles.

Their courtship is steamy, hilariously so; a sequence where Roxster is forced to rip off his soaking-wet shirt at a party is already a frontrunner for best movie scene of the year. Then it becomes tender, and, with that, very complicated.

Also in the mix is Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Mr. Wallaker, Bridget’s son’s science teacher, whose initial oil-and-water chemistry with Bridget soon matures into an appealing combination. Both suitors get their swoon-inducing moments, both physically (whoo-ee, are these men ripped) and, most importantly in the world of Bridget Jones, emotionally.

Sure, this is a movie about Bridget finding love again, but it’s also about her falling back in love with life, after a crushing loss that could have crippled that potential however. How sad would that have been—and yet, how relatable for all of us?

I love that this series never reduced Bridget to pure optimism or delusion. That’s now how life works. Bad things happen, and we know they will. She’s often a mess, yet it only sometimes bothers her. She understands that resilience is hard, but it is healing, too.

It’s exasperating how many franchises, sequels, and reboots there are, but somehow Bridget Jones feels different. This is a character-based franchise. There feels like a purpose each time we check back in with her; certainly, we’ve grown along with her, which is something the series blissfully understands.

Maybe the Bridget Jones rom-com land is its own “universe,” akin to how Marvel, DC, Harry Potter, Star Wars, and the like have theirs. But it understands the thing that matters most in the universe, or at least in its universe: the person, the human…my friend. Again, I know she’s not real. But let me have this one, at least for now.

Today’s Top Entertainment News

Soap Operas Are Back

Almost 40 years after his genius first entered the world, a 13-year-old soap opera creator is finally getting his due.

It happens to now be in a live show staged in Los Angeles, 13-Year-Old Michael Ausiello Presents: Beverly Hills — A Pretend Soap Opera Performed by Real Actors. But do not be confused by that title. Beverly Hills, the soap opera in question, is very real.

To see it performed four decades later is an unhinged, hilarious experience, one brimming with absolute lunacy, a skosh of narcissism, and some surprising profundity. It’s an homage to the soap opera genre, a tribute to superfandom, and a rally cry for just a good, giggle-filled fun time. We may all be losing our minds right now; it’s way more fun to watch some of the best comedic actors in the business lose their minds on stage instead.

Here’s the wild conceit: In the mid-’80s, Michael Ausiello, the founder of entertainment website TVLine.com and the writer of the book and movie Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies, was a closeted teen soap opera enthusiast who channeled his obsession into writing a whopping 517 episodes of his own soap, called Beverly Hills. He kept those handwritten scripts, and is now staging them in cold readings featuring stars like Michael Urie (Shrinking), Yvette Nicole Brown (Community), Gillian Jacobs (Community), Dulé Hill (Psych), and Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones).

Are the episodes…good? At the performance I saw last week, there was a secret murder, a hostage situation, a search for a hidden prism with life-saving powers, and the Russian circus came to town. Performed with utmost sincerity by the ace cast, it was ludicrous. You can watch a livestream of the show here—a riotous respite from, you know, [looks around] everything.

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Live From New York, It’s a Wild Story

There is apparently one person in entertainment who is more powerful than Taylor Swift. (Currently googling, “Does witness protection accept people fleeing from the wrath of the Swifties?”...just in case.)

More words have been spilled than exist in the Library of Congress the last few weeks about Saturday Night Live, its history, and its legacy, with the show’s 50th anniversary special airing—in a twist—Sunday night on NBC and Peacock.

Easily one of the most fascinating pieces I read was this New York magazine feature about the reign of Lorne Michaels, the extent of his power and influence, and what might happen to the show if he ever leaves. It’s a juicy, insightful read, but the highlight was a Taylor Swift anecdote that sparked a visceral reaction: I gasped so loudly and reflexively that the sudden, explosive interruption to the total silence in my apartment actually scared me.

In any case, the quick summary is that Michaels wanted Swift to appear in a “Bad Blood” parody that framed her girl gang as a cult. She personally called him to say absolutely not, and to demand the sketch not air. In the end, it was Swift who wound up kissing the ring. Read the whole anecdote below:

This Is the Kind of Gossip We Crave

I clicked so fast on the tell-all about the disastrous production of the new Marvel movie headlined “‘I Think Everyone Knew This Is Probably Not Going to Be a Good Film’” that I think I sprained my pointer finger and shattered my computer’s mousepad.

The Vulture piece has an anonymous source who worked on Captain America: Brave New World dishing about everything catastrophic and messy that went on behind-the-scenes. Everything from cranky actors to nerves about MAGA reaction is cited. But here is the quote I’m living for: “Everyone kind of felt their buttholes tightening a little bit.” I think this phrase should be used more often when talking about how things at work are going pretty badly.

How was it for me trying to get this newsletter out on time this week? Well, everyone kind of felt their buttholes tightening a little bit. In this case, that’s me, the bird on my fire escape who won’t shut up, and the ghost who lives in the corner of the closet. Touch-and-go for a bit there. Buttholes tight.

Happy Valentine’s Day

I do not have a Valentine this year. But Cosmopolitan did gift me—I like to think me, personally—this photo shoot of The Traitors breakout Dylan Efron. Thanks, Cosmo!

More From The Daily Beast’s Obsessed

The Gorge: A horror-action-thriller-supernatural-romance. Something for everyone. (Now on Apple TV+)

Paddington in Peru: The hero we all need right now! (Now in theaters)

The White Lotus: Don’t worry, it’s great! Yay! (Sun. on HBO)

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy: May the make these movies forever. (Now on Peacock)

Captain America: Brave New World: My colleague liked this, but I don’t believe him! (Now in theaters)

Yellowjackets: Remember when this was TV’s coolest show? (Now on Paramount+ With Showtime)

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