It’s been twelve years since we’ve followed the tumultuous life of beloved British heroine, Bridget Jones. Naturally, a few changes have occurred since the first sequel, Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason, and now we find our heroine in Bridget Jones’s Baby.

Golden Globe winner Renée Zellweger, 47, says,’I was really excited about the prospect of coming back to Bridget. There was a lot to explore in terms of how to animate her evolution to this period of time. How she has changed, how she has grown, and most importantly, how she hasn’t. But it was very familiar, and the process of preparation was the same.”

Some marked differences include the most obvious; Bridget is indeed expecting a baby, and there is another addition to the franchise, Patrick Dempsey, who plays American billionaire tycoon Jack Qwant, replacing Hugh Grant’s caddish Daniel Cleaver. The dynamic of two men vying for her affections remains, though now Colin Firth‘s Mark Darcy has a bigger challenge on his hands with the equally charming American.

Dempsey says, “It was tough because we didn’t know how the dynamic between Colin’s character and my own would play itself out. But Jack is an American, so we tried not to fall into the traps of the typical types of conflict. Both men love her, they both care about her and about what’s going to happen to the baby.”

Stepping into such an established franchise also had its challenges. “The good thing about that was that enough time had gone by since the last film, so they were looking at the story in a fresh way, and restarting. Everyone was in the same place as me, as in we were all a little nervous about how the story would continue.”

Jones’s career has also progressed by leaps and bounds, ultimately vaulting her to news producer. Zellweger says, “I grew up taking it for granted that women held high profile positions of power and influence. It seems that now the young generations coming up are entering the workforce, and they are not aware of the struggles the women ahead of them endured, except from the historical context. They are probably out to feel entitled to what it is they have to contribute, and don’t question it. They are not waiting for permission to speak and not thinking it’s exceptional if they, say, write a script or run for office or whatever it may be.”

The Bridget Jones movies have grossed $544.5 million worldwide, and it is one of the rare female-driven franchises. Zellweger says, “I am happy about that. And we have a female writer, female director, female producer and a female-centric film. And it makes me smile that people have been responding to it so positively, because I think there is a message in that, [the message] that these stories are valuable.”

Directed by Sharon Maguire (Bridget Jones’s Diary), this is the first of the films that wasn’t adapted from a Helen Fielding novel, though Fielding co-wrote the script with Golden Globe winner Emma Thompson (who plays a small but pivotal role).

One thing that remains consistent is Zellweger’s pitch-perfect accent. Of a role she won over such established British actresses as Kate Winslet, Tilda Swinton, Rachel Weisz, Helena Bonham Carter and Elizabeth Hurley, Dempsey says, “Renee was always in her accent throughout the shoot. It wasn’t until we started doing press that I heard her normal speaking voice. I thought, ‘Who are you?’” Firth joked earlier in the day, “I think her Texan accent is fake.”

It was a tough decision for Zellweger not only to return from her hiatus in front of the camera, but to a much-cherished role and story she hopes will hold up to the previous two films.

“If you make a third film based on a character that is beloved by so many people, you want to be careful with it. I felt a responsibility to Helen Fielding that we make something that matters to her characters and her world. It had to be based on something substantive and true to the tradition of this character, and what she represents.”