Nia Vardalos talks "Larry Crowne" and its leading stars
(CBS) When Tom Hanks approached Nia Vardalos five years ago and asked her to write a script with him, she said she jumped at the chance. That script is now the film "Larry Crowne," which Hanks directed and stars in alongside Julia Roberts.
Vardalos, whose credits include writing and starring in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," said it was surreal to work with the two stars.
"It was surreal to watch Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts just eating a bagel on the set," she told Celebrity Circuit. "It was surreal to see Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts just walking through air like normal people. I was like, these are the two biggest movie stars on Earth. And I'm standing beside them."
The film focuses on a middle-aged man (the Larry Crowne of the title, played by Hanks) who goes to his local college to start over after losing his job. There, he joins up with a gang out outcasts and develops a crush on the teacher of his public speaking class (Julia Roberts).
Hanks came up with the idea about six years ago, long before the country's current economic hardships began. And while those issues make the film relevant, she said, "Larry Crowne" is about more than just the economy.
Pictures: Tom Hanks
Hanks on directing "Larry Crowne"
"Tom Hanks managed to walk this beautiful line of keeping it relevant and yet uplifting and fun. It's not a documentary about the economic crisis. It is about one man's very optimistic, very real journey," she explained. "It doesn't wrap everything up in this beautifully romantic comedy way. It is just a simply, perfectly charming movie for adults about what happens if you have to reinvent yourself."
The actress/screenwriter has teamed up with the GUM brand of oral care products to launch their PerioBalance challenge - PerioBalance is a natural dental probiotic that improves gum health and reduces plaque - and added that she was motivated to whip her smile into shape because of Roberts' trademark grin.
"I realized I'm going to be standing pretty close to Julia Roberts - as close as the restraining order will let me," she joked of the film's red carpet. "I realized with that megawatt smile [she] has, I actually better do something."
Vardalos added that working on the film with Hanks - particularly, with him sitting in the director's chair, was an experience unlike any other project she's worked on.
"I got to be the co-writer and just be on the set and watch Tom Hanks direct the movie, and so for me it was a little bit like going to film school," she said. "I really enjoyed being on the set. I didn't have to go through hair and makeup, I just had a baseball cap and lip-gloss on and just got to watch, and I really enjoyed it."
Larry Crowne opens in theaters on July 1.