Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, the fourth installment in the beloved franchise starring Renée Zellweger, has achieved a record-breaking debut at the UK and Ireland box office.
Universal confirmed that the romantic comedy grossed £11.8 million ($14.9 million) in its first four days, making it the highest-grossing opening for a romantic comedy in the region. The film surpassed the previous record set by Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason in 2004.
According to Comscore, the film dominated cinemas across 2,250 screens and accounted for 45% of total box office revenue in the UK and Ireland on Saturday. It also outperformed Captain America: Brave New World, which debuted in second place with $8 million. Universal further revealed that the film recorded the highest-ever opening for a Working Title production and ranked as the 11th biggest Universal debut in the market, trailing Jurassic World Dominion but surpassing Oppenheimer, Minions, and Despicable Me 3.
Despite its strong UK performance, Mad About the Boy has not been released theatrically in North America, where it premiered directly on the Peacock streaming platform. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Front Row, The Telegraph film critic Robbie Collin attributed this decision to Bridget Jones being "an extremely local concern," noting that the character, created by British author Helen Fielding, has less appeal in the US.
Beyond the UK and Ireland, the film also topped the weekend box office in several European countries, including Poland, the Netherlands, and Norway, Universal reported.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ