The Insider.com

'Bad Teacher,' Awesome Bloopers

Unlike many of you, I absolutely loved Bad Teacher -- but then again, I prefer Cameron Diaz when she's being naughty (see: The Sweetest Thing), so this decidedly dark comedy about the world's worst teacher was right up my alley since the students are the only ones not dropping F-bombs.

Joining Cammy D in the raucous romp are Jason Segel, Justin Timberlake and Phyllis Smith, best known for The Office, but quickly becoming a comedy force in her own right. I caught up with Phyllis to talk about her biggest movie to date, why she still marvels at this big screen career and what it's like working on The Office in this post-Carell world.

Insider.com: I have to tell you, I loved Bad Teacher.
Phyllis Smith: So did I! And it's sad to say, but there's a lot of myself in the character [laughs]. I didn't have to go too deeply to find her. Although, she really came out of the first table read. I was scared to death, really nervous and I remember my voice shook during first scene I started to read and everyone laughed – so my brain kicked in and I realized they thought it was funny, so I let my nerves take over. That's why Lynn had that nervous voice going on -- it was born out of true nerves.

Insider: And I loved the idea that Cameron's character Elizabeth would be friends with Lynn since there were some Single White Female vibes flying around, if you ask me.
Phyllis: Yes, I agree. Lynn looked at Elizabeth like her hero. She wanted to be just like her, even though she knew it was wrong. Lynn secretly wanted to be the sexy, bold, bad girl. In real life, we absolutely adore each other. It was like we'd been friends for years. We had such a good time together in between scenes and playing around.

Insider: You were in casting for 19 years, was acting always your long-term goal?
Phyllis: I'm still pinching myself that I was in a movie with Cameron Diaz. Being in casting for 19 years teaches you all too well that things come quickly but go just as quickly as they come. I was sure that somewhere along the line, the bottom was going to fall out of this dream. I can't believe it still hasn't happened.

Insider: Lastly, how has it been working on The Office without Steve Carell this season?
Phyllis: Steve is the nicest person walking this earth. So professional. I miss him as a friend and an actor, but we're plodding through it. James Spader is great – very professional. From what I can tell, his process is slightly different than Steve's, but the numbers are holding and people seem to like what we're doing. Plus, now the writers have a chance to explore all the other characters as well.

Bad Teacher hits DVD and Blu-ray in an Unrated Edition on October 18, click here to pre-order!