Hugh Grant has admitted Renée Zellweger is one of the few female co-stars he hasn’t “fallen out with” over the years.

The two actors appeared alongside one another in the first two Bridget Jones films, and while he ultimately chose not to return for the third, Hugh has insisted his and Renée’s relationship is still solid.

“I love Renée, she’s one of the few actresses I haven’t fallen out with,” Hugh told SiriusXM.

“We got on very well together and we still exchange long emails. Hers in particular, at least 70 pages each, interesting stuff, but quite hard to decipher. She’s a properly good egg and a genius.” 

He also added that Renée’s recent Oscar-winning stint in the Judy Garland biopic Judy was “about as good as acting gets”.

Earlier this year, when Renée was awarded Best Actress at the Baftas for her appearance in Judy, she was immediately followed on stage by Hugh, who couldn’t resist a nod to their Bridget Jones’s Diary characters.

“First of all, well done Jones. That was a very, very silly little dress, I thought,” he joked. 

Backstage, Renée also shared her reaction to Hugh’s comment, telling reporters she thought the moment was “really cool”.

“That’s part of what I’m talking about with this [win] being really, really special,” she added, in a video posted by Heatworld. “It makes you feel like you’re one of the gang, and it’s quite a gang to be a part of.”