Olivia Munn says Jon Hamm gave her confidence she could still act after 5-year break
Olivia Munn stars alongside Jon Hamm in the new Apple TV+ series "Your Friends & Neighbors."
The actress told ABC Audio she was initially "very intimidated to meet and especially work with" the "Mad Men" star.
"He is so kind and generous," Munn said, before detailing how Hamm helped her out in a moment where she was struggling.
"I hadn't acted since 2019, because we had COVID, then I got pregnant, then I had postpartum [depression], then I had cancer," Munn said.
The five-year gap left Munn wondering if she had forgotten how to act, the actress said.
The first scenes she shot for "Your Friends & Neighbors" featured her and Hamm running into each other at a country club. Munn said she always prides herself on remembering her lines perfectly, but something was different this time around.
"I started on these two scenes, and I kept mumbling my words and forgetting lines," Munn said.
She said she began to panic.
"I just was like, 'Oh my god, oh my gosh ... did I lose it?'" Munn said.
She said that as she was spiraling, Hamm, who is also an executive producer on the project, took notice.
"Jon noticed the inner panic that I was failing at covering up. And he took me aside and said, 'Hey, you got this. You can do this. This is why we want you. We know that you can this. Just relax,'" Munn said.
That changed everything, according to Munn.
"Just him talking to me like that, one-on-one, actor to actor, as my executive producer as well, just gave me a lot of confidence," Munn said. "I calmed down. And then it's really been smooth sailing from that moment on."
Episode 4 of "Your Friends & Neighbors" drops Friday on Apple TV+.
