Julia Louis-Dreyfus Vs. "Christine"

"New Adventures" In Season Four Of Hit CBS Comedy Include Same-Sex Marriage

(CBS)  Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus has had a long and distinguished career in comedy.

Many could say she has already conquered the TV world with her Emmy-winning portrayal of Elaine Benes on "Seinfeld" and her stint as an ensemble member of "Saturday Night Live."

Not one to rest on her laurels, the actress is entering her fourth season on CBS' wildly popular "The New Adventures of Old Christine" -- a role for which she won a second Emmy in 2006.

During a visit to The Early Show, the actress shared a few laughs with Julie Chen, and laughed as she denied being as funny in real life as she is on TV.

In the TV comedy, Louis-Dreyfus plays Christine Campbell, a nutty but loveable divorced working mom who's attempting to juggle the stresses and relationships of daily life.

When asked if she shares any similarities with Christine, the actress says she is able to relate.

"Anxiousness comes to mind," she said. "You know, the character is -- it's very sort of self-deprecating. There's a hysteria that runs through the show that I suspect runs throughout my life as well that I try to keep under wraps," she said.

"You want to do so well by your kids and you want to make the best decisions for them, and that's fraught with a kind of anxiety that I sort of turn up the volume for on our show."

Has that anxiety always been there?

"Yes, apparently so," she replies with a laugh. "According to my analyst, yes."

This season brings big changes for Christine.

"Barb, who is played by the delicious, fabulous Wanda Sykes, is in danger of losing her citizenship. She's from the Bahamas. In an effort to keep her in the country, I offer to marry her and she ultimately accepts. So it’s a sexless, same-sex marriage," Louis-Dreyfus explained.

In real life, the actress is happily married to writer Brad Hall.

The couple, who are now parents to two sons, met in college at Northwestern University. They performed together at Hall's Practical Theatre Company in Chicago and from there moved on to New York and "SNL."

Chen asked what it was like working with Hall, who at the time, was her husband-to-be.

"Working with him is great," Louis-Dreyfus said. "He's a really nice man and he's always funny to be with, to tell you the truth."

The "New Adventures of Old Christine" airs Wednesday's at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.