# Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason
**Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason** is a 2004 romantic comedy directed by Beeban Kidron, the sequel to *Bridget Jones's Diary* (2001), in which [Bridget Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/bridget-jones)'s new relationship with Mark Darcy is tested by her insecurities and the return of her ex-boyfriend Daniel Cleaver.[1](https://www.miramax.com/movie/bridget-jones-2-the-edge-of-reason/) • [2](https://www.classificationoffice.govt.nz/find-a-rating/quick-takes/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/) It stars [Renée Zellweger](https://www.edgepedia.org/renee-zellweger), Colin Firth, and [Hugh Grant](https://www.edgepedia.org/hugh-grant), and adapts Helen Fielding's 1999 novel of the same name.[3](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason) • [4](https://www.citizen.co.za/lifestyle/entertainment/keeping-up-with-the-jones/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 2004; US limited release 12 November 2004, expanded wide 19 November; UK distributor U.I.P.[5](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Bridget-Jones-The-Edge-Of-Reason) • [6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zndu5oda) |
| Director / writers | Directed by Beeban Kidron; screenplay by Adam Brooks, Richard Curtis, Andrew Davies, and Helen Fielding[1](https://www.miramax.com/movie/bridget-jones-2-the-edge-of-reason/) • [7](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/48986/) |
| Source | Helen Fielding's 1999 novel *Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason*, the second Bridget Jones book[4](https://www.citizen.co.za/lifestyle/entertainment/keeping-up-with-the-jones/) |
| Cast | Renée Zellweger (Bridget Jones), Colin Firth (Mark Darcy), Hugh Grant (Daniel Cleaver), Jacinda Barrett (Rebecca), Jim Broadbent, Gemma Jones, James Callis, Shirley Henderson, Sally Phillips[3](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason) |
| Box office | $263,894,551 worldwide on a $50,000,000 production budget; $40,203,020 domestic[5](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Bridget-Jones-The-Edge-Of-Reason) |
| Reception | Metascore 44 (mixed or average, 37 reviews); Rotten Tomatoes 27% Tomatometer, 60% Popcornmeter[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/) • [9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridget_jones_the_edge_of_reason) |
| Rating | R (MPAA) for language and some sexual content; BBFC notes strong language, sex and drug references[3](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason) • [6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zndu5oda) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story picks up shortly after the first film, with Bridget working as a TV host and dating the barrister Mark Darcy. Her jealousy of the time Mark spends with his co-worker Rebecca ([Jacinda Barrett](https://www.edgepedia.org/jacinda-barrett)) strains the relationship, and a vacation meant to smooth things over instead ends it.[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridget_jones_the_edge_of_reason) On assignment in Thailand, she has a dalliance with her ex, Daniel Cleaver, and is temporarily jailed on a false accusation of drug smuggling before Mark comes to the rescue.[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridget_jones_the_edge_of_reason) Universal's synopsis frames the setup as six weeks, four days, and seven hours into the relationship with "one flawless boyfriend," with Cleaver arriving "claiming to be a reformed man."[3](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason)
## Production
The film was produced by [Working Title Films](https://www.edgepedia.org/working-title-films) with [StudioCanal](https://www.edgepedia.org/studiocanal), with [Tim Bevan](https://www.edgepedia.org/tim-bevan), Eric Fellner, and Jonathan Cavendish as producers, and was distributed by Miramax (Mars Distribution in France).[7](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/48986/) Adrian Biddle was the cinematographer, Greg Hayden the editor, Gemma Jackson the production designer, and the music credits include Harry Gregson-Williams.[7](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/48986/) The screenplay credits all four writers who worked on the first film's adaptation, including Fielding herself.[1](https://www.miramax.com/movie/bridget-jones-2-the-edge-of-reason/)
The BBFC classified the cinema version at 107 minutes 36 seconds on 22 October 2004; a 103-minute cut was classified for home entertainment in 2005.[6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zndu5oda) Its content advice describes mild comic violence, occasional strong language, comic sexual references, a drug-smuggling subplot with a magic-mushroom hallucination scene, and frequent smoking and drinking by the central character.[6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zndu5oda)
## Box office
The film topped the UK and international box office in its opening week, taking £10 million in its first three days in the UK alone.[10](https://www.comedy.co.uk/film/bridget_jones_edge_of_reason/) In the United States it opened on 12 November 2004 in 530 theaters with $8,684,055, expanded to 2,450 theaters the following week, and finished with $40,203,020 domestically and $223,691,531 internationally, a worldwide total of $263,894,551 against a $50 million production budget.[5](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Bridget-Jones-The-Edge-Of-Reason) The Guardian, citing [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter), put the sequel's worldwide gross at $262 million, with the US take at $41 million, softer than the first film's $71 million.[11](https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2013/jun/02/profile-bridget-jones-helen-fielding)
## Critical reception
Reception was markedly cooler than for the first film. Metacritic recorded a Metascore of 44 from 37 critic reviews, categorized as mixed or average, against a user score of 6.3.[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/) Rotten Tomatoes shows a 27% Tomatometer from 157 reviews, with the critics consensus calling it "bogged down in slapstick and silliness" and "a predictable continuation of the Bridget Jones story," while audiences gave it 60%.[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridget_jones_the_edge_of_reason) Roger Ebert gave 75, calling it "a jolly movie" that "doesn't shift into high with a solid thunk the way *Bridget Jones' Diary* did"; Variety found Bridget "still fat, funny and endearing" but "all a bit, um, familiar, actually."[12](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/critic-reviews/) Zellweger was nominated for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical at the 2005 Golden Globes.[1](https://www.miramax.com/movie/bridget-jones-2-the-edge-of-reason/)
## Place in the series
The film is the second of the Bridget Jones franchise, between *Bridget Jones's Diary* (2001) and *Bridget Jones's Baby* (2016), with Zellweger later returning again in *Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy* (2025).[13](https://www.womanandhome.com/life/news-entertainment/renee-zellweger-loved-normal-bridget-jones-shifted-expectations-leading-lady/) *Bridget Jones's Baby* departed from Fielding's third novel and set its story a decade after the events of *The Edge of Reason*.[14](https://time.com/4494760/bridget-jones-hasnt-lost-her-charm/)
## References
1. [Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason, Miramax official site](https://www.miramax.com/movie/bridget-jones-2-the-edge-of-reason/)
2. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, New Zealand Classification Office](https://www.classificationoffice.govt.nz/find-a-rating/quick-takes/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/)
3. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason)
4. [Keeping up with the Jones, The Citizen](https://www.citizen.co.za/lifestyle/entertainment/keeping-up-with-the-jones/)
5. [Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason (2004) box office, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Bridget-Jones-The-Edge-Of-Reason)
6. [Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason, BBFC](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zndu5oda)
7. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Cineuropa](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/48986/)
8. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/)
9. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridget_jones_the_edge_of_reason)
10. [Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason, British Comedy Guide](https://www.comedy.co.uk/film/bridget_jones_edge_of_reason/)
11. [Bridget Jones: older, yes, but still mad about the boys, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2013/jun/02/profile-bridget-jones-helen-fielding)
12. [Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bridget-jones-the-edge-of-reason/critic-reviews/)
13. [Renée Zellweger loved playing 'normal' Bridget Jones, Woman & Home](https://www.womanandhome.com/life/news-entertainment/renee-zellweger-loved-normal-bridget-jones-shifted-expectations-leading-lady/)
14. [Bridget Jones Hasn't Lost Her Charm, Time](https://time.com/4494760/bridget-jones-hasnt-lost-her-charm/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Teen and comedy series film entries › Entries released in the 2000s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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