Javier Bardem says co-starring with Julia Roberts in new film ‘Eat Pray Love’ was ‘easy’

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Bardem says co-starring with Roberts was ‘easy’

NEW YORK — If Javier Bardem had to choose whether to eat, pray or love, he doesn’t know which one he’d pick.

“The three of them? Why people want to choose one?” said the 41-year-old actor, who co-stars with Julia Roberts in the new film “Eat Pray Love,” directed by Ryan Murphy. “That’s why it’s called ‘Eat Pray Love.’ The movie talks about the importance of feeding yourself for things that make you be healthier. The three of them are very important.”

Bardem attended the premiere of “Eat Pray Love” at the Ziegfeld Theater on Tuesday night.

“Even if you don’t practice any religion, we all pray,” he said. “When things get wrong we all close our eyes and we hope that there is somebody stronger and wiser and more able than us that can help us.”

Bardem won a supporting-actor Oscar for the 2007 crime thriller “No Country for Old Men.” He married fellow Oscar winner Penelope Cruz last month. The couple, who are from Spain, appeared together in the 2008 Woody Allen romantic comedy “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.” Cruz won a supporting-actress Oscar for her role in the movie.

“Eat Pray Love,” inspired by Elizabeth Gilbert’s best-selling memoir, follows the story of a frustrated divorcee who decides to take a long trip oversees in search of some peace.

Bardem plays a handsome stranger in Bali who offers to help Roberts’ character after she’s hit by a car while riding a bicycle. He becomes her tour guide, seducing her with his knowledge of the local traditions and delicious food.

Bardem said working with Roberts was “easy.”

“I’m always saying that the great actress that she is we all knew. I’m not discovering anything here,” he said. “But I didn’t know the person and I was very impressed about how generous she is and how fun to work with her. And then when were fighting, after work we were having a good laugh.”

“Eat Pray Love” opens in theaters Friday.