Eastwick's Sara Rue On Her Own Facebook Movie, Acting Politics and Being Harassed by Andy Dick

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Although she is best known for her work in Less Than Perfect and Popular, Sara Rue has built a comprehensive resume dating back to her starring role in NBC's Grand and a Roseanne cameo as a younger version of the star, blockbuster parts (Pearl Harbor, The Ring) and the occasional reality appearances (Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, E! Hollywood Hold'em). These days, Rue plays Eastwick's most suspicious resident -- the younger, spunkier Gladys Kravitz of ABC if you will -- while developing her own feature film and scouting her next sitcom gig. Movieline spoke to Rue two weeks ago about all of this and Andy Dick as her dogs barked in the background.

Do you think Penny's future holds any magic of her own?

I do have a feeling that I will have powers of my own.

You have the most sitcom experience of all the leads in Eastwick. Did you have to audition? Would you ever want to carry your own sitcom again?

I didn't audition for any of the leads but [executive producers] Maggie Friedman and David Nutter offered me the part of Penny. I read the script and liked it and thought it was interesting and I think as an actor, I always try to do stuff that I've never done before. I'd never done anything with a supernatural part before. Except for my part in The Ring, but I didn't have to do anything supernatural. Maggie actually called me up and said, "I promise you that you're going to have so much to do. I have this great idea for Penny." She really talked me into it.

But carrying my own show again is exactly what I want to do. I loved my experience on Less Than Perfect so much and I would like something like that again. I love half hour -- I feel like it's where my heart and soul is somehow. It's the perfect combination of fun and light and extremely challenging. And also I have the elements of dealing with a live audience.

[Dogs barking] Sorry about this, there is a siren going by. [Struggling] Can you still hear them?

Not at all.

I locked them in the other room. It's really embarrassing if you're in a sidewalk cafe and a siren goes by.

But it's really what I want to do. The first show I ever did was Grand when I was eleven and that was a half hour. And I loved it and it's always where I want to go back to.

You've guest-starred on both of Chuck Lorre's series, Two and a Half Men and Big Bang.

I loved those experiences so much. I love Chuck Lorre. I did a little guest spot on Roseanne when I was fourteen. It was a whirlwind experience in a week and I think with Chuck, I had auditioned for him for a couple of other shows of his over the years. And not gotten anything but had gotten really close - down to the final two girls a couple times. I think he appreciated that I came in and did a good job and I was someone he could take to the network to say, "I like this girl" and they'd say "Ick, we don't." But he needed someone to bring.

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So, after Less Than Perfect was canceled, he called me personally and said "I want to talk to you about doing something on Two and a Half Men, will you come in?" And I said, "Absolutely!" and went into his office where he pitched me the idea for the character, the part of the pregnant daughter. And he was like, "Would you play pregnant?" And I said, "Oh my god, yes!" How fun is that? So we shot that episode and at the end, he said, "Do you want to come back and do another one?" And I said, "Yes!" So we shot another one after she had the baby and she is kind of a little bit of a trashier character which is really fun for me.

Then I got a call to do an arc on Big Bang. What's funny is that normally I'd need to see a script and know what I was doing but with Chuck Lorre, I don't need to see anything because I know how good he is. And I just trust that it's going to be good, and it always is. Wherever he wants me to go, I will follow. I feel so honored that he calls me in to work for him.

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