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Joe Marino/New York Daily News
Ben Stiller (left) and Kristen Wiig, stars of ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on Saturday. Stiller and Wiig took questions from Daily News readers during an exclusive live chat.
It wasn’t a daydream.
Ben Stiller, the director and star of “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” and Kristen Wiig, his co-star, really were fielding questions online from Daily News readers Saturday afternoon in an exclusive live chat.
Joe Marino/New York Daily News
Stiller (left) joked that he really enjoyed working with Wiig, ‘even though she refused to make eye contact with me for the entire shoot.’
RELATED: ‘THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY’ TRAILER PREMIERES
“I really enjoyed working with Kristen even though she refused to make eye contact with me for the entire shoot,” quipped Stiller, when asked about working with Wiig on the film about a mild-mannered everyman with vivid waking fantasies about a more adventurous life.
Wilson Webb/Wilson Webb
Ben Stiller (left) plays Walter Mitty, a mild-mannered everyman with vivid waking fantasies about a more adventurous life. Kristen Wiig (right) is the film’s leading lady.
“I’m sorry I can’t answer questions when Ben is in the room,” his leading lady retorted.
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Joe Marino/New York Daily News
Over the course of the chat, Stiller (left) revealed some secrets from shooting the film, which opens Christmas Day.
Over the course of the 25-minute Web chat, Stiller revealed some secrets about filming the epic fantasy sequences for the movie that opens Christmas Day, including the fact that audiences won’t get to see one of his favorite scenes from the script.
“The one that I was really looking forward to was a ‘Lawrence of Arabia’-style fantasy where Walter sees his boss Ted riding up Sixth Ave. with about 60 stallions and they were all dressed like Anthony Quinn holding scimitars,” Stiller said.
Wilson Webb
Ben Stiller (center) directing ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.’ Stiller also plays the titular role in the film.
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The rest of the sequence called for Ted grabbing Wiig’s character and riding down into the subway — and emerging at the other end of the line in a desert Bedouin village, where the cast would break out into a musical number from “Grease.”
Joe Marino/New York Daily News
Kristen Wiig (right) turned semiserious when asked about her departure from ‘Saturday Night Live’ for a full-time movie career.
“I would really have liked to film that,” said Stiller.
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Wilson Webb/Wilson Webb
‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ stars also answered questions about their holiday plans and the possibility of a ‘Zoolander’ sequel. Here, Ben Stiller (left) and Kristen Wiig in a scene from the film.
Wiig turned semiserious when asked about her departure from “Saturday Night Live” for a full-time movie career. “I do miss ‘SNL’ very much,” she said. “The pace, the people, the crazy schedule. Your brain has to be on 24/7 and with movies, the schedule is really different. I can’t say I like one better than the other. It’s like using two different muscles.”
The Hollywood stars answered everything from what they would be doing over the holidays (“Twerking,” said Wiig) to the possibility of Stiller filming a sequel to “Zoolander.” (His answer? “Everything is possible … even a ‘Zoolander 2.’ ”)
“Thank you for virtually connecting with us,” Stiller told readers before signing off. “I feel like we got to know each other really well. This is what human contact is all about. This would have been a great way to communicate with Kristen on the set.”
“Ben, stop touching my arm,” Wiig answered, “and please look away.”
