Ellie Kemper plays the friend of a couple who record their lovin’ in “Sex Tape”.
Credit: Getty
Ellie Kemper, of “The Office” and “Bridesmaids” fame, knows how to steer a conversation. When talking about the awkward questions that come up about a film called “Sex Tape” —in which she plays the friend of a couple (Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel) who actually make one — things quickly got weird.
You’re probably fielding a lot of inappropriate questions because of the theme of this movie, huh?
It didn’t really occur to me, stupidly, until today — “I guess there are going to be a lot of questions about sex tapes, aren’t there?” They haven’t been too bad. I haven’t made any sex tapes so I haven’t had to bring any up.
That’s convenient.
That’s very convenient. I planned that. But it hasn’t been too bad. There’s been some questions about sex tapes in our culture, but I don’t have such great insight into that. [Laughs] It’s mind-boggling. I think some people want them to be leaked, and that’s one thing. But if you are doing something like that and you never want anyone to see it, then you shouldn’t do it in the first place. [Laughs]
You’ve been doing well in comedy, going from “The Office” to “Bridesmaids” to this. Is there a plan in place for you?
When you are starting to perform, you think, “I would love a job that pays.” And it seems strange to ever say no to any project that comes up, but I think the general idea that I have right now is to keep doing projects that involve great people, because it’s a proven recipe for success. So if there’s someone you want to work with, it doesn’t totally matter what the content is, because it will always yield a better experience and a better product.
Do you see yourself moving out of comedy in any way?
I hope this doesn’t make me shallow, but I don’t totally have an interest in doing that right now. I love comedy. I think it’s a lot of fun, and I have fun doing it so I don’t feel like I want to be doing that just yet. But maybe in the second half of my life I will turn all drama all the time. We’ll see.
So you know exactly when the midway point of your life is?
Yup. I’m actually living to 104, so when I’m 52 it’s only going to be serial killers and rapists for me. [Laughs] But they still retain a youthful air.
Socializing media
You’re not on Twitter, are you?
I’m not, and it sort of is a conscious decision. People have suggested it. I know how I react to things, and I so worry that I wouldn’t be able to handle Twitter. I might be too sensitive and I might get too obsessive about it. It’s a wonderful platform, I just think I would get too involved and it might upset me. It takes up a lot of time, being on Twitter. I think that I would not be able to put it away for the night, if that makes sense.
Better to keep your sanity, then.
Yeah. Every now and then I’ll be doing something and I’ll think, “I would like to tweet that!” But then I think, “Ugh, but then you’d have to tweet again in an hour, and it would never end.” No. No more.
