‘Pre-sales are bigger than Barbie’: Bridget Jones 4 set to break box office records – despite no US cinema release The fourth instalment, Mad About the Boy, on course to become biggest homegrown hit of the year in the UK, but will only be available on streamers stateside.
“We’re anticipating it to be one of the biggest titles of the year in the UK, the biggest British film of the year, and the biggest box office for the first half of 2025,” says Robert Mitchell, director of theatrical insights at Gower Street Analytics.
The latest Bridget Jones instalment also offers a female-skewed alternative to more mainstream new releases, including Captain America: Brave New World, Marvel’s new superhero offering starring Harrison Ford and Anthony Mackie.
Early word of mouth on the film, whose reviews are embargoed until 12 February, has been positive, with many praising the reinvention and stamina of the franchise, despite the central love triangle having two new corners: Chiwetel Ejiofor (who plays a strict yet ripped science teacher) and Leo Woodall (a strapping parks supervisor).
For Mad About the Boy the distributor Universal Pictures and production company Working Title struck a deal for US rights with the streamer Peacock before the film went into production, but some are now wondering whether such scepticism about its American prospects may have been misguided.
