'She's Out of My League' best friends discuss acting, music, kids

Actresses Alice Eve and Krysten Ritter sit elbow-to-elbow on a couch at King’s in Boston. They are wrapping up a publicity tour in support of the comedy “She’s Out of My League,” which opens Friday.

Ritter and Eve play best friends in the film, and in real life they definitely evoke that BFF vibe.

“Alice is my biggest fan,” Ritter says as Eve sings the lyrics – “I’ll just go where the pretty girls go” – one of Ritter’s songs. Ritter has a side gig as a singer and guitarist in the band Ex Vivian.

Aside from their taste in music, the two actresses are pretty different. Eve is the blonde bombshell with a British accent so sweet that when she curses – and she does – it doesn’t sound foul. She lives part-time in London. Ritter – no relation to the late actor John Ritter – is a lanky brunette who was plucked out of obscurity from a suburban Pennsylvania mall by Elite modeling agency.

“I am a farm girl from humble beginnings,” she says, laughing. “It’s very different than how we are living now.”

The daughter of English actors Trevor Eve and Sharon Maughan, Alice Eve took a more traditional route to acting. She did TV work on popular BBC dramas, including “Losing Gemma.” That led to the Tom Stoppard play “Rock ’n’ Roll,” which landed her on Broadway. Film roles, including Molly in “She’s Out of My League,” followed.

“From ’06 to ’08 I didn’t stop working, and by the end I was ill,” Eve says about taking respite and keeping her projects manageable.

“I live my life. I find that really important. I don’t work as much as Krysten because I like my life. I choose it this way. I have brothers, I have friends, I have other things,” says Eve, who likes to read, write and cook in her downtime. She’s also a big fan of “The Bachelor” and “30 Rock.” Her next role is Charlotte’s nanny in “Sex and the City 2,” which opens in May.

Ritter, on the other hand, is a whirlwind of infectious energy. Modeling led to commercials, which led to small film and television parts.

“And here we are 10 years later,” says Ritter. “I’ve been going nonstop ... I get sick a lot, strep throat all the time.” Her acting resume includes Isla Fisher’s sidekick in “Confessions of a Shopaholic” and an ill-fated drug addict on TV’s “Breaking Bad.” Next up are the TV series “Gravity” on Starz and the film “Killing Bono,” plus a few more projects in the pot.

“They are using two of my songs in the pilot episode of my new TV show. So I snuck that on in there,” Ritter says, flashing her polished smile.

One area the actresses, both 28, sync up on is having children. They both want them.
“It’s been weighing heavy on me lately,” Eve says.

“You see one and you just want to snuggle it and eat it,” Ritter says, adding that she needs more stability in her life before becoming a mom.

“I have a goddaughter and that’s nice. I have a baby in my life, then I get to send her home,” Ritter says.

In the movie “She’s Out of My League,” Eve and Jay Baruchel (“Fanboys,” “Undeclared”) play a mismatched couple in which the geek gets the hot girl. The film’s characters spend a lot of time debating the Tao of Love, in which they rate hotness. Eve’s Molly is a “hard 10” while Baruchel’s Kirk is a solid 5. Legend has it that if you jump more than two spots, the relationship is doomed.

During our chat, Ritter and Eve agree to a ratings game. They didn’t know Jacoby Ellsbury (they’re hoops fans who rate Dirk Nowitzki and Kobe Bryant as extremely hot). After some debate, the Sox outfielder, who was initially an 8, “because it says it on his hat” went to a 10.

“We want Boston to like us,” Ritter says.

Adds Eve: “Plus, we like a man in uniform.”

Next up is Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen.

“Based on looks only – and he looks like my boyfriend – he’s hot,” Ritter says.

“But, here’s the thing, he left his pregnant girlfriend,” Eve says. “But based on looks alone we have to give him a 10.”

A quick “over it” wipes away any discussion about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

And before the next photo gets laid out on the table, the actresses let off girlish squeals.

“Jaaayyyy. Look at him. I love him,” Eve says about Baruchel, her co-star. “He’s very good and very talented.”

In reality, the ladies said they don’t like rating people. “It’s rather cruel,” Eve says. “If you’re dating them, they don’t feel like a 5 and if you love someone, they are a 10.”

Reach Patriot Ledger writer Dana Barbuto at dbarbuto@ledger.com.