Debby Ryan from the new movie "Life of the Party" has taken only a few college classes over the years because she's been so busy working on TV and film projects since she was 13. Her co-star Gillian Jacobs not only graduated from Julliard, but a major hunk of her acting career had her in "Community" college.
But both stress how they got to share in an acting master class while working with Melissa McCarthy on the comedy directed by her husband, Ben Falcone. In it, a middle-aged mom (McCarthy) goes back to get her college degree after her husband asks for a divorce.
Ryan and Jacobs play very different college students. Ryan portrays Jennifer, the school tyrant who rules with an iron social fist and thinks every other classmate is her inferior. Jacobs plays Helen, a woman who enrolled in college after waking from a long, long coma that left her just a little off her mental game.
They agree that working with McCarthy was a wonderfully comfortable experience and a great opportunity to watch someone who has had so much success perform.
"She is so smart and gorgeous and hilarious and warm," Ryan said. "It requires a lot of power to do all she does with such grace and balance.
"It would be very easy to be intimidated by her because she is so unstoppable and such a legend, but the second you meet her, she has a way of breaking that down so you only have more respect for her."
Jacobs said, "She really cares about the other actors and their talent. She has this rare ability to be both this powerhouse performer and a really kind and generous co-star. They don't come much nicer than Melissa."
This role's a big change for Ryan, who tends to get cast in nice girl roles, such as in the 2011-15 Disney Channel series "Jessie." The Alabama native said she's happy to play a queen bee. "It shows that they believed in my abilities and that I have that kind of range," she said.
