Q&A with BABES star Ilana Glazer

1) How did becoming a mom yourself prepare you for your new movie, BABES?
Becoming a mom widened and deepened my reservoir for feeling, and I was able to reach higher heights in comedy without straining, and it helped me settle into depicting feelings of loss more accessibly. One of my favorite scenes to play was giving birth, and it’s very much drawn from the real athletic experience I had giving birth, as well as the shock of ecstasy when my baby arrived.

2) It's not your typical new mom comedy - Rolling Stone called it the "Bridesmaids of babymaking" - is that a fair description? How do you describe it?
I could not think of a higher compliment than that. We have so few comedy movies that explore the challenges in female friendships, there’s not many other comparisons to be made. I describe this movie as an outrageous comedy with a lot of heart. It’s about two best friends, Eden and Dawn, played by me and Michelle Buteau, in very different places in their lives; Dawn is married with kids, and Eden is a free spirit, totally naive to the responsibilities of parenting. When Eden gets pregnant by a one-night stand, she decides to keep the baby, and it tests Eden & Dawn’s lifelong friendship.

3) Michelle Buteau your co-star is a real life old friend of yours - is she also a "mom friend?" And why are having friends who are moms so crucial?
Michelle is definitely a mom friend because we talk through the minutia of problems and solutions in our parenting, especially as artists who travel for our work. Any mom or parent who wants to get down and dirty and be honest about what they’re struggling with at the moment and jam on ways to improve or get support, is a “mom friend” to me. Michelle is a true superhero mama, who worked so hard to create her family, who works so hard every day doing standup, TV & film, and has TWINS! Being around her helped prepare me to become a mom working in our field. And her kids are two years older than mine, so I’m lucky to have that preview.
4) What surprised you most about motherhood/becoming a mom? Anything you would have told yourself before your baby was born that you wish you knew?
The joy. I was prepared for how hard it would be, was told I’d lose sleep, that it would strain my partnership and all that, but I was not prepared for the ecstatic joy I am privileged to experience every day. It shocks me, three years in. There’s just so much beauty so close, it’s intense. And I would have told myself: trust your instincts, girl.