Hugh Grant hints that despite his novel character's fate, Colin Firth could make an appearance in some form as Mark Darcy in the Grant will make his return as Daniel Cleaver 20 years after his last appearance in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, with 2016's Bridget Jones' Baby omitting him as presumed dead due to an off-screen plane crash until its final moments.

With Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy set to release on Valentine's Day 2025, Grant opened up to Screen Rant about the likelihood of Firth's return as he attended the premiere of his horror feature, Heretic, at the Toronto International Film Festival. Despite his absence from the initially announced cast, Grant seems certain that a potential appearance by Firth's Darcy will happen. Check out Grant's answer below:

I'm not convinced that he's not in it. I think they're hiding something.

Is Hugh Grant Right About Colin Firth's Potential Bridget Jones Return?

The Movies Have Had A History Of Deviating From The Books Significantly

For Grant and his own experience with the Bridget Jones movie series, his skepticism over Firth not returning for Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy is understandable. Grant was outspoken about being unimpressed by the earlier scripts for the movie that would become Bridget Jones' Baby, ruling himself out of the project and leading to Cleaver being written out as assumed dead until his survival is confirmed a year later by the film's ending. As such, with his own character having received such a creative exclusion, he may feel Firth could receive the same.

Mark's fate is rooted in personal reasoning for Fielding.

While the movies have taken liberties with the lore of Fielding's novels, as seen with Cleaver's omission and replacement in Bridget Jones' Baby, Mark's fate is rooted in personal reasoning for Fielding. The 2013 novel that Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy is set to adapt saw Mark killed off in a landmine incident, which was inspired by Fielding's own experiences with how life can be unpredictable through her experiencing loss. As such, while past movies have made clear deviations from their source material, it is likely Mark's death will remain.

Though the casting announcement for Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy affirms that Mark's fate will remain true to the novel, Grant may not be entirely wrong in assuming Firth may return, albiet in a smaller appearance. Though controversial, the movie could carefully handle Mark's death using the advantages the medium of film offers, allowing Firth to return via flashbacks as characters reminisce on his and Bridget's life. As such, a return to the franchise by Firth may not be out of the cards after all, as Grant suggests.

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