Why Jillian Bell enjoys a good run

Q: Did you actually film at the New York City Marathon?

A: We did. We did film a little bit there and it was unbelievable to witness all of those people on a day like that. … It’s amazing. I definitely would love to go for nothing to just cheer people on. It’s very emotional to watch these people accomplish an incredible feat.

Q: How did the other runners around you react to the filming?

A: I think a lot of people thought that we were shooting a documentary. People were really good about not looking at the camera. I mean, they were also running 26 miles themselves so we didn’t have too big of a problem with that (laughs).

Q: Are you a runner?

A: I would say now that I kind of am. I don’t do it as much as I was doing it during the preproduction and filming, obviously, but I do enjoy a good run.

Q: You met the real Brittany during filming. Did she give you any words of advice?

A: She’s amazing. She’s a wonderful human being and I absolutely understand why Paul (Downs Colaizzo, the film’s director) was so inspired by not only her story but herself. She didn’t give me too much advice.

You know, I went and saw a bunch of running coaches and they taught me how to run poorly and how to run like you’ve been running for a couple of years. We go through with each part of that throughout the movie and she was just super supportive, though, throughout the whole process.