In a recent interview with British Vogue, Renée Zellweger opened up about her six-year-long hiatus from acting. After starring in hit films like Jerry Maguire (1996) and the Bridget Jones Diary trilogy (2001-2025), Zellweger took a step back from the spotlight for this rather interesting reason.
Zellweger was interviewed by her Bridget Jones costar, Hugh Grant, prior to the February 14 release of the film series’ fourth installment, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy. During the interview, Grant asked his costar why she left acting from 2010 until 2016.
“Because I needed to,” Zellweger responded. “I was sick of the sound of my own voice. When I was working, I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, listen to you. Are you sad again, Renée? Oh, is this your mad voice?’ It was a regurgitation of the same emotional experiences.”
But despite Zellweger’s decision to take a break after making blockbuster hits, she says she had a lot of time to do other things she loved.
“I wrote music and studied international law,” Zellweger continued. “I built a house, rescued a pair of older doggies, created a partnership that led to a production company, advocated for and fundraised with a sick friend, and spent a lot of time with family and godchildren and driving across the country with the dogs. I got healthy.”
Zellweger answers whether she would choose to be an actor today
Grant and Zellweger dove deep into what it means to be an actor today, compared to when they joined the ranks. Grant questioned whether Zellweger would choose the same path today as she did in the early 1990s, but her answer was surprising.
“I wondered if I would too, because I’m not sure that the way that it works now, celebrity and all of that stuff, I don’t know that that suits me,” Zellweger shared. The actress explained that what it means to be an actress today is not quite the same as what it was when she began her career. Today, it is often the celebrity that many aspire to be rather than the artist.
“The line has become increasingly ambiguous [between celebrity and actor],” Zellweger continued. “And notorious and famous and known are now all the same thing. It used to be that you were known because you had done something that was worth knowing about.”
Grant too answered the question about whether he would choose the same career path he did in the 1980s, but his answer was much more concise.
“No,” Grant said simply.
Zellweger broke into the acting world following her education at The University of Texas at Austin, booking her first major role in 1992 with A Taste for Killing. Grant, meanwhile, began a decade earlier with his film Privileged (1982).
Luckily for fans, both the actor and actress have stuck to their chosen paths, and we get to see them reunite on the big screen soon enough.
You can catch Renée Zellweger and Hugh Grant in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy streaming on Peacock on February 13 or in theaters on February 14.
