Toni Colette (left) and Renee Zellweger as Bridget Jones (right).Photo: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images; Universal/Studio Canal/Miramax/Kobal/Shutterstock
Toni Collettehas no regrets in her career — and that includes turning down the lead role in theBridget Jonesfranchise.
The actress, 50, addressed the role that ultimately went toRenée Zellwegeron Thursday’sWatch What Happens Live, saying: “I think there are no coincidences. Anything that’s meant for you in life is meant to happen. I have no regrets — life happens as it’s meant to. But that is true, yeah.”
Collette previously shared in an interview withYahoo Entertainmentthat she was offered the starring role in 2001’sBridget Jones’s Diary, but ultimately passed on the opportunity because she was “busy” working on Broadway musicalThe Wild Party.
“I wasn’t available,” the Australian actress said. “But sometimes I think about and I think, I don’t know, that character’s so similar to Muriel [ofMuriel’s Wedding]. It might’ve been too close. And I try not to repeat myself.”
“And nearly everybody who has read the book knows Bridget either it’s themselves or it’s their friend,” she said. “So casting her was very scary. I figured that when [Zellweger] walked in the room, we’d know. She did walk in the room, and we did know. And we went ‘Oh f—, she’s a Texan.'”
“We were in the curious position of people saying: ‘They’ve gone for some American to make it more marketable.’ Well, we weren’t thinking we’d make loads more money because Renée’s not in the Julia Roberts or Mel Gibson stratosphere. But she’s got this inner irreverence and she’s got this innocence and vulnerable exterior,” she added. “She also has a very good sense of physical comedy and was so dedicated to getting it right, When I first met her, she said: ‘If you and I get this wrong, we’re so busted.'”
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Of course, the films ended up being a success — with the first earning the star, 53, an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
In recent months, Helen Fielding — the author behindBridget Jones’s DiaryandThe Edge of Reason— revealed she’sworking on transforming her third bookin the series,Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, into a movie.
“YesI’m working on itand I really hope it will happen,” Fielding, 65, told theRadio Timesback in November. “Every film that gets made is a miracle — it’s really difficult to make films happen and to make them good. But I’d love to see it on the screen.”
While promoting her showThe Thing About Pamon Sirium XM’sThe Jess Cagle Showlast year, Zellweger expressed her interest in wanting to portray her famous rom-com character again in a new film. When asked if there was a possibility of another sequel, she responded, “I hope so. I hope so. I mean, it’s fun, you know, she’s so much fun.”
“I love being in her shoes,” Zellweger added. “I mean, it makes me giggle, you know, every day on set the choices that we get to make about just how awkward we can make her circumstances. It’s just so much fun.”
source: people.com
