Another 'Dozen' For Bonnie Hunt

Back in 2003, Bonnie Hunt and Steve Martin teamed up to play the parents of 12 kids in the film "Cheaper by the Dozen."

Now the entire vast cast has reunited for another family vacation in the sequel "Cheaper by the Dozen 2," which opened Dec. 21.

Hannah Storm interviewed the master — or mistress? — of improvisation for The Early Show. But any improvisation in this comedy, Hunt says, is done purely in self-defense.

"When you're the mom in a big family comedy, you have to get your personality when you can," she says.

Her co-star Steve Martin, however, is less loose on the set.

"Steve is more of a planner, stick to the script. I like to be a little more fun," she says. But in tandem, she says, that makes them "a good combo platter."

She admits to some hesitation in doing "Cheaper by the Dozen 2." The first was a monster hit and a second, she says, could have been "icky." She was the last to sign on for the film, but once all of the kids from the original had joined the cast, she couldn't resist playing Mom again.

"Once I knew all the children would be there, I couldn't miss being part of the team," she says. "I'm glad because it was wonderful being with the kids."

One of her on-screen daughters is the hot teen star Hilary Duff, who returns as Lorraine Baker at a time when her career as both an actress and a singer is red-hot.

"To see somebody like Hilary, too, who has grown up so much in the last couple of years, and see the pressure she's under, the poise that she has," Hunt says. "All of the children ... It's really an opportunity to be a part of this memory in their lives and now be able to watch what happens to them in life."

Hunt found a new ally in Carmen Electra, who plays the trophy wife of the rival clan, the Murtaughs, who are pitted against the Baker family. Faced with the on-screen antics of Steve Martin and Eugene Levy, the on-screen wives team up for a friendship that extended to real life.

"We're both obviously very different women," she says, but "We became fast friends. It was nice."

Hunt was once a nurse in Chicago while she pursued a comedy career on the side as a performer with the renowned Second City troupe. Movie-goers first met her in 1988 as the toothpick-dropping waitress in "Rain Man."

The matriarch of the Baker clan has no children in real life. But she's one of seven kids herself. And, like the Baker clan, they'll all be together this year for Christmas.