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Mandy Moore and Nate Bargatze lead The Breadwinner, in theaters May 29
Moore tells PEOPLE she joined the film about a stay-at-home dad in over his head because she’s “such a fan” of Bargatze’s comedy
“It’s wild how hard he works. I was just in awe of that,” she recalls
Mandy Moore‘s decision to sign onto her new movieThe Breadwinnerwas an easy one. Its star and co-writer, Nate Bargatze, was reason enough.
“To be quite honest, I’m such a fan of Nate’s,” Moore, 42, tells PEOPLE of joining the comedy (in theaters Friday), which features Bargatze as a car salesman stepping in as a stay-at-home dad. Inspired by the comedian’s material about his own parenting experiences, it marks his feature film debut.
“I loved the script,” says Moore, calling it a “celebration of moms.” The actress plays a homemaker-turned-entrepreneur who, after nailing a Shark Tank pitch, must leave her husband in charge of their three daughters.
Nate Bargatze and Mandy Moore in ‘The Breadwinner’
Credit: Jennifer Clasen
“It really felt like the movies that we all grew up watching and loved, these sort of cherished family movies that don’t get made anymore and certainly aren’t in a proper theater,” she adds. “So it was a no-brainer to me.”
Directed by Eric Appel and co-written by Dan Lagana, The Breadwinner features a hilarious supporting cast, including Colin Jost, Zach Cherry, Martin Herlihy, Kumail Nanjiani and Will Forte. Playing Moore and Bargatze’s daughters are Stella Grace Fitzgerald, Birdie Borria and Charlotte Ann Tucker — “so remarkable and so sweet,” says Moore.
How did the two leads and their three young costars form an onscreen family unit? “When we first were meeting and talking, it did feel very easy,” Bargatze, 47, tells PEOPLE. Thanks largely to the three charismatic and tight-knit kids, he says, “It felt like a family. So it made it just easy to just kind of roll with it.”
‘The Breadwinner’
Credit: Frank Masi
“Nate’s an extremely busy guy,” Moore points out. “I mean, not toot your horn, but this guy was making a movie all week and then would leave and go do stand-up on the weekends and then show back up on set, ready to go at 7 AM.”
She adds, “It’s wild how hard he works. I was just in awe of that.”
Bargatze, who has hosted Saturday Night Live and the Emmy Awards but never acted in a film, took it all in stride. The set of The Breadwinner, he jokes, was “very efficient. You know what? They’ve been doing movies for quite a while and they’re doing pretty good. They know what they’re doing.”
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The Breadwinner is in theaters Friday, May 29.
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