World premiere of Renée Zellweger film is massive for Edinburgh

Renée Zellweger’s representatives contacted Edinburgh International Film Festival about showing her directorial debut

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Renée Zellweger brought the 1990s fictional heroine Bridget Jones, previously confined to the printed page, to life in truly spectacular style in the film series. Along with stellar performances in films like Cold Mountain and Jerry Maguire, it made her one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

So the news that her directorial debut, an animated short film called They, will have its world premiere at Edinburgh International Film Festival in August is “a really big coup”, as the EIFF’s director Paul Ridd rightly said.

The world premier of Renée Zellweger's directorial debut will be held in Edinburgh (Picture: Dia Dipasupil) | Getty Images

What’s more, it was Zellweger’s representatives who got in touch with the festival, rather than the other way around. Given it wasn’t that long ago that it seemed the annual event had collapsed, this represents a real turnaround in its fortunes.

It’s not clear if she will come to Edinburgh for the premiere, but we sincerely hope that she will. In the event that she does, we offer the following timeless advice from Bridget’s friend ‘Shazza’, words of wisdom that all travellers would do well to heed: "Passport, Bridget. And pants."