Ken Marino was impressed with how quickly Jennifer Aniston agreed to make a cameo in his new comedy.
Marino, 57, opened up to PEOPLE about the hilarious celebrity cameos that feature in his new movie Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Passat the comedy’s Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday, June 23. Gail Daughtry sees Zoey Deutch portray a Midwestern bride-to-be who travels to Hollywood to seduce Jon Hamm — playing a heightened version of himself — after her fiancé cashes in his own celebrity “hall pass” before their wedding. Hamm’s Mad Men costar John Slattery also plays himself in the movie, on top of a host of other celebrity cameos.
Marino says that casting Hamm, 55, and Slattery, 63, was pretty simple, given that the men have all worked together before. Recruiting Aniston, whom Marino has known for years, too, was “pretty much the same,” he says. “We’re all old friends now and you call up and you say, ‘Well, it would be great if we can get somebody like Jennifer Aniston.’ And then we went, ‘Well, let’s ask Jennifer.’ And then of course we were expecting she’s busy, she’s doing something, but she’s so cool that she was like, ‘Yeah, when do you want to do it?’”
“And she’s done that before with us,” Marino adds. “I did a thing called Burning Love a long time ago and she came and did one day on that and it was so funny and wonderful, and such a trooper and a team player. And she’s so good.”
Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass‘s cast includes Sabrina Impacciatore, Joe Lo Truglio, Ben Wang, Miles Gutierrez-Riley and more, excluding the cameos in which several celebrities portray themselves. Marino, who cowrote the comedy with longtime collaborator David Wain (Wet Hot American Summer), even plays a former PEOPLE photographer who plays a key role in tracking down Hamm’s whereabouts in L.A.
“We didn’t have time to take too many big swings,” Marino says of their stunt casting efforts. “I mean, when you’re lucky enough to have been working in this town for this long for over three decades, almost four decades, you know people who are different levels of hot shots, and so we reached out to the people we wanted to be in the movie and they all said yes. So it was nice.”
Hamm previously appeared in Wain’s 2007 comedy The Ten, while both he and Slattery starred in the 2015 Netflix prequel series Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, which debuted as Mad Men was coming to an end that same year. Aniston costarred in Marino and Wain’s 2012 movie Wanderlust with Paul Rudd. As Marino says, he and Hamm have known each other since they were both trying to break into Hollywood in the 1990s.
“We would be sitting in many, many rooms together, and so we became friends a long time ago when we were young men and David and John and I all played poker together,” he recalls. “So, when we wrote the script, we wrote it and we got to now see if Jon would do it. And so he read it and he said, ‘Absolutely. Let me send it to Slattery.’ And then Slattery said, ‘This is ridiculous. I’ll do it.’ “
Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass is now in theaters.
Jennifer Aniston and Friends Show Off Stunning Summer Styles
These days, when people say something is basic, they don’t always mean it in a flattering way. But when it comes to wardrobe staples, basic is anything but boring. Just look at the ways Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Garner, and Joanna Gaines have been wearing them.
All three stars recently wore mix-and-match pieces that are the foundation of any great capsule wardrobe. Aniston paired vintage-wash jeans with a fitted black tank for a sleek, casual look, and Garner dressed up light-wash jeans with a luxe-looking, short-sleeve polo shirt. As for Gaines, she went monochromatic in black jeans and a loose-fitting tank.
If you’re also now inspired to upgrade your own staples, keep scrolling for lookalike Quince clothing pieces starting at $16.
Jennifer Aniston’s Minimalist Masterclass
Aniston’s minimalist tank top and jeans combo is a go-to for her, and we can see why. To recreate her effortless ensemble, we found this Quince tank top with a modest scoop neck, fitted silhouette, and thick straps. It’s made of breathable cotton that’s lightweight enough for summer but can also be layered in the fall and winter. Team it with this pair of jeans, which has a vintage-inspired wash similar to the actress’s. The wide-leg style makes them a comfortable choice whether you’re running errands or heading to lunch.
Jennifer Garner’s Polished Polo
If your style favors classic silhouettes, Jennifer Garner’s sunset look belongs in your closet. Her timeless polo shirt looks nearly identical to this Quince one, which is made of soft, luxe cashmere. It has ribbed, fitted arms, a mid-sized collar, and an adjustable button-front neckline. Shoppers say it’s “lightweight enough for warm weather,” with one noting they “didn’t feel hot at all” wearing it on a 90-degree day. When it comes to her jeans, this lightwash pair is a great option with its subtle heathering at the hips and traditional five-pocket design. The barrel silhouette isn’t overwhelming, and reviewers call them “comfortable in all the right places.”
Joanna Gaines’ Black Basics
Basics are timeless, but that doesn’t mean they can’t also feel modern. Gaines’ monochromatic look proves that. Like this Quince top, her tank has a breezier fit with a subtle curve along the arms, and yes, while it looks good on its own, it’s also great for styling under linen button downs in summer and cardigans come fall. Our personal favorite piece of her look, though, is the sleek, flared jeans. Achieve the same style with Quince’s Luna pair, which mirrors Gaines’ silhouette and has built-in stretch for comfortable, all-day wear and a just-right mid-rise fit.
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