In “More of Me” your character splits into three just to juggle everything she has going on in her life. Do you relate, with everything you have to deal with each day?

I really relate to it. I have a 2 1/2-year-old and a 4-year-old, I work and I’m also a wife. You feel like you’re always spread really thin. I’m always so busy. You don’t have a minute because you have to do it all, so I totally related to it.

Did being a mother in real life affect the way you approached this role?

Oh my God, yes. Before I had kids, I didn’t really know how to play a mother well. It didn’t feel very natural. I was raised by my dad. My mom passed away when I was four. So it was kind of a foreign concept to me. But now that I have kids, I love it. It’s so comfortable. Having children has really changed me in so many ways.

How many sides of you would you need to split into to make your life easier?

There’d be two versions of my work self. There’s a lot of show business that’s just business and another side that’s purely creative, so it’d be great if there were one each of those sides. And I’d love it if there could be one of me for each child. That’d be good because they both need me so much. And an extra one just for my husband, like in the movie. So, that’d be five.

Was it challenging to play three separate aspects of the same woman?

It wasn’t hard because I’m used to doing characters. And these weren’t extreme characters because they were all a version of the same person. Mostly you have to remind yourself that these are all slightly altered versions of you: This is the sexual one; this is the business one. Although it was challenging in the fact that filming was so quick that we’d switch back and forth a lot. I’d end up playing one, changing my hair, and then going right into the next one.

Which of the three aspects was your favorite to play?

The ID, the sexual one, was the most fun to play. She felt more extreme. She’s the one that’s consumed with her husband and with sex and only wants to eat and have fun, and drink and enjoy life. The ego, the one that was the work person, she was more cerebral and serious. She was only so-so to play. But I think Alice, the main version of the main character I played, is the most like me.

Were there any funny moments on the set?

There’s a scene where the ID side of my character is showing off all of this lingerie that she bought. The director thought it would be cute for me to show off the clothes with music. There were a crew of men standing around, and all I could think was that I wished we’d rehearsed a dance. I felt so ridiculously embarrassed and shy. But to overcome it, I committed and went fully crazy. I did a very dirty lingerie dance that I knew would never make it to the air, but I did it for the crew to make them laugh. They were cracking up.

What was your experience working with your costar, Steven Weber?

We’d worked together on another movie, “The 12 Days of Christmas,” so I knew him really well, which helps because there’s so much intimacy that it gets very intense. Because you work such long hours and work really hard, it makes it much easier when you have somebody that you personally really like and click with. We had a blast.

With “Year of the Dog” and now this film, you seem to be getting a lot of attention for being a serious actress as opposed to a comedian. Did you start out intending to be one or the other?

I love being known as a comedian. “Saturday Night Live” changed my life. It was a huge break for me. But I started out at New York University drama school as a serious actress. I moved to L.A. after I graduated, and started doing all this comedy work, and the comedy came very naturally to me. I felt like I’d found my calling. But, I feel like my comedy is more “dramatic” comedy. I come from an actor’s place in performing it. I always start from a truthful place with the characters. So I approach drama and comedy in a very similar way.

What’s the one kind of role you wish you could play that might surprise people?

I love ’40s women. They’re remaking “The Women.” I wish I could do a part like that. I love that whole era of super-talented, fast-talking women. I’d love to do something very stylized, with quick banter. I’d also love to do something really dark and super-dramatic. Although “Year of the Dog” was pretty dramatic and sad.

You’ve worked with lots of talented people on SNL. Any standouts?

I don’t even know where to begin. Of course, Will Ferrell. He’s so easygoing and such a good writer and a very laid-back person. I always looked up to him. I was always anxious about things we had to write, always stressed out. Show weeks felt like there was a test hanging over your head. Writing always came very easily to him. He was always a pleasure to work with.

What about some of your favorite guest-hosts on SNL?

Gwyneth Paltrow really stuck out as a natural comedian. She just wanted to have fun. Jennifer Aniston was the same way. She could handle a lot, was easygoing and happy. I like the ones that have fun with performing instead of taking it so seriously. Bill Murray was great. Jim Carrey was fun and made stuff so much better. I met Bono. When I watched him perform on the show, he blew the roof off the house. He’s also an incredibly charismatic person, kind and pays attention to everyone. The list goes on.

Do you have any guilty pleasures?

I love coffee. It makes me really happy, and I drink way too much of it. I love the ritual around coffee. I go to this place called Chelsea Market near my house. I take my kids over there, and we go shopping and get coffee. I like whipped cream on my coffee. That’s a guilty pleasure I do too much. The world of cappuccinos was something I could indulge in once I started making money. I was so excited when I could buy cappuccinos every day! That was a luxury to me, so I still really appreciate it.

Quick Picks:

What was the last good movie you saw?

“Superbad.” I thought it was well-written and funny. I loved it.

What was the last good CD you heard?

My husband just bought me one that was great. It’s the girl singer from the iPod commercials, Fiest.

What was the last good book you read?

“Waiting for Daisy: A Tale of Two Continents, Three Religions, Five Infertility Doctors, an Oscar, an Atomic Bomb, a Romantic Night, and One Woman's Quest to Become a Mother.” It’s hilarious. It’s about a woman, her relationship with her husband, and all the things they do to have a baby.

What was your first job?

I worked in a bathhouse at a swimming pool in our neighborhood. I would sit in the changing room and take bags while people changed their clothes and went swimming. I would sit there and read magazines, eat peanut-butter crackers and gossip. It was a fun job.