Colin Firth joins Woody Allen's next film; says 'Bridget Jones' sequel a ways off

He may have just opened up a new chapter in his career by signing on to lead Matthew Vaughn's spy thriller The Secret Service, but what Colin Firth is primarily known for is lending an air of credibility to romantic comedies. And when it comes to the genre, there's still no greater voice than the legendary Woody Allen, so it's time for he and Firth to finally start working together.

Firth has joined the previously-announced Emma Stone in Allen's next untitled film, which will shoot in the south of France later this year. No plot details, of course, but you can expect to see a lot more big names coming aboard in the next weeks. Allen's next film, Blue Jasmine, opens this summer.

So while Firth is keeping himself plenty busy, one potential project may have fallen away. Last year there was quite a bit of buzz surrounding Bridget Jones' Baby, which would have seen him reunite with Renee Zellwegger and Hugh Grant for the comedy threequel. Firth had expressed some concern over the script, which was initially written by Paul Feig but was passed on to David Nicholls and Helen Fielding. Nothing has really happened since, and now Firth gives an update that doesn't sound promising at all. He tells the Chicago Sun-Times....

Firth: "Unfortunately, it might be a bit of a long wait. I wouldn’t say that it’s completely dead in the water, but the way it’s going you might be seeing Bridget Jones’ granddaughter’s story being told by the time we get there…There is a joy of doing those movies that keeps hope alive. And the story is going in an interesting direction. I just wouldn’t say that the movie is imminent."

Peter Cattaneo will take the helm if Bridget Jones' Baby does eventually get off the ground.