Jennifer Lopez's former driver may claim working for the megastar is no joy ride, but don't tell that to her What to Expect When You're Expecting costar Rodrigo Santoro.
The Brazilian hottie says he had a blast playing J.Lo's music-executive husband in the upcoming movie adaptation of the iconic pregnancy guidebook.
How so? Read on to find out what Mr. Santoro has to say about the American Idol judge...
"Jennifer was really great," Santoro told me last night at ICM after a screening of Heleno, his biopic about 1940s Brazilian soccer star Heleno de Freitas. "She was very cool."
Especially since the romantic comedy isn't Santoro's usual fare. "She was really generous," the 300 actor said. "She's incredibly professional and helped me a lot because I think she's got this natural talent for comedy. She is fun!"
And, he added, "She's gorgeous."
In the flick, Santoro, 36, and Lopez, 42, play a couple trying to adopt a baby. Cameron Diaz, Anna Kendrick, Elizabeth Banks and Brooklyn Decker costar as pregnant moms-to-be. Rounding out the cast are Matthew Morrison, Chris Rock, Joe Manganiello, Chace Crawford and Dennis Quaid.
Heleno is something entirely different. Not only did Santoro produce the film (he spent five years getting it made), but he also stars as de Freitas, who died in a mental institution in 1959 at age 38 after an addiction to ether and untreated syphilis caused him to go insane.
Santoro became unrecognizable when he lost 28 pounds for the role. "It wasn't too healthy," he said. "It was a very strict diet for two months and a lot of cardio. I just kept dropping, dropping and dropping. I had to do it because that's the way he died."
Also coming up for Santoro is The Last Stand opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger. He'll then reprise his role as Xerxes in the sequel to 300, which begins filming in July. I'll have more about those two flicks later on.