Melissa McCarthy on husband Ben Falcone: ‘you get to work with your best friend’

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Melissa McCarthy’s new film, Life of the Party, comes out next week. The premise is that Melissa’s character goes back to college with her daughter after a divorce. If I’m being honest, it looks pretty formulaic and a rip-off of Rodney Dangerfield’s Back to School, but I’ll still go see it. I laughed a couple of times during the trailer and Melissa’s films are usually good for a Discount Tuesday night out. Plus there’s bonus Maya Rudolph, who I’d watch in almost anything. As with many of her projects, Melissa worked with her husband Ben Falcone. In this instance, he was her co-writer and director on the film. When asked about their frequent collaboration on projects, both Melissa and Ben said it’s what works for them, not just because they are good artistically but because they get to work with their bestie.

In the new movie Life of the Party, director Ben Falcone helped create a comedy about a middle-aged mother who returns to college after her husband calls for a divorce.

During the process, he got to work alongside his wife Melissa McCarthy who serves as both a writer and star of the film. So, what’s it really like on set for this Hollywood couple?

“It’s ridiculous. It’s like you get to go to work with your best friend. It’s exactly how we met and we became such good friends because we loved doing this together,” Melissa shared with E! News’ Will Marfuggi at the film’s premiere. “To get to do it on this kind of scale and still keep telling stories…it’s a dream.”

Ben added, “It’s the best thing I could ever imagine. It’s the best.”

[From E!]

I do believe they mean this. They’ve worked together in some compacity many times since they met and they seem to come out stronger for it. The Mister has edited some of my fiction work, that’s as close as we’ve gotten to actually working together. He is absolutely my best friend on the planet and an excellent editor, but it would do our relationship no favors for him to do it regularly. But it works for Melissa and Ben so more power to them. To show that they really can separate their job from their relationship, the love scene between Melissa and her 23-year-old co-star, Luke Benward, was filmed on Melissa and Ben’s wedding anniversary. As I understand it, the love scene was limited to just making out but still, I’d have trouble directing someone to grab my spouse’s ass.

The movie was filmed in Atlanta because what isn’t these days, but Auburn University students won a contest to bring the premiere to East Alabama. While there, Melissa and Ben presented a $50,000 check to the Auburn University Foundation, which will benefit the Jay and Susie Gogue Performing Arts Center (Melissa and Ben donated $25,000 and Warner Bros. and New Line matched their donation). The whole cast showed up for the premiere – it looks like it was a really good time for both the cast and the town. And I think it’s pretty cool that the contest to host the premiere was only open to colleges.

Bonus track: Christina Aguilera appears in Life of the Party so Melissa showed up for her Carpool Karaoke – it’s really cute. Melissa gets in about the 3:10 mark.

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Photo credit: WENN Photos

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18 Responses to “Melissa McCarthy on husband Ben Falcone: ‘you get to work with your best friend’”

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  1. Rose says:

    Am I crazy that I love that suit? She looks great. She really is a pretty lady.

  2. Neelyo says:

    Unfortunately, the movies she makes with him aren’t as good as her others and this one looks mediocre at best.

    I want her to reunite with Paul Feig for SPY 2. There’s a movie deserving of a sequel.

    • Slowsnow says:

      SPY is one of my comedy go-tos when there is nothing good to watch. Rose Byrne is also awesome in it as is Miranda. An action-comedy film led by women. Bangin’

    • Doodle says:

      I agree! Spy was so entertaining! And can we talk Peter Serafinowicz? He was the best, especially that little twist at the end when you were left wondering what his actual nationality really was.

    • Darla says:

      Yeah I love that movie. Now I feel like watching it again. I need some laughs, don’t we all these days!

    • whatWHAT? says:

      I’m with you folks…that movie is SO FUNNY.

      and Jason Statham playing basically a parody of his other characters is awesome. he clearly has a good sense of humor.

      “not the car, *I* was on fire.”

  3. Umyeah says:

    Someone needs to make a movie with Meghan, Leslie Jones, Tiffany Haddish and Kate McKinnon.

  4. Anastasia says:

    I have Movie Pass so I’ll definitely see it, plus I’ll watch her (and Maya Rudolph!) in ANYTHING. I don’t even care if it’s horrible. I think me and Melissa would be besties.

    I’ve worked with my husband before–for about two years. We LOVED it, but I changed careers and he stayed in that one. I get her. He’s truly my best friend.

    • Slowsnow says:

      I often work with my husband and also loved it. He is my best friend who I want to bang – and who lets me 🙂

  5. Mama says:

    I love Melissa. All the time. I told my daughter this was going to be me in a couple years I better watch it for research. 😀

  6. Em says:

    I got to go to the Auburn premiere! I’m a senior and it was such a fun kickoff to finals week! Didn’t get to see Melissa McCarthy because I had to go home and write a paper due the next morning but her husband came into our theater and thanked us all for coming. They seem really down-to-earth!

  7. Jag says:

    I just don’t like her for some reason. Yes, I thought some of what she did in the carpool karaoke was fun – and she did seem like a nice person in the segment – but I just don’t get her humor.

    The ripoff movie doesn’t look funny at all to me. Perhaps it’s just my bias against her, but Rodney did it a lot better from what I can see.

    As for being at Auburn, I hope that they were careful. There is a rare eye cancer that has been found in 36 people now who went to Auburn, and they don’t know why there seems to be a cluster there. The other cluster for that cancer is in Huntersville, N.C., so be aware of that, too – just in case.

  8. No Doubtful says:

    I love them as a couple! Unfortunately her movies are hit or miss for me…

  9. KeepingItReal says:

    Too bad she’s gaining the weight back. She was making so much progress.