How Meg Ryan got back in the rom-com game

Nora Ephron’s warmhearted spirit buoys “What Happens Later,” Meg Ryan’s welcome return to film rom-coms, the genre that turned her into one of America’s sweethearts — and most popular actors — in the late ‘80s and ‘90s.

Those were the days when she was known for her effervescent gold-standard performances in “When Harry Met Sally” (written by Ephron) and “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail” (directed and co-written by Ephron).

In the same vein of those rom-com essentials, “What Happens Later” tells a sentimental, defiantly uncynical story. That’s by intention, says its star.

“This is a movie that just has its heart on its sleeve and that’s the boldest thing about it,” Ryan said. “It’s just vulnerable.”

Ryan not only stars in “What Happens Later,” she directs, serves as an executive producer and co-wrote the film with playwright Steven Dietz. It’s is Dietz’ stage comedy “Shooting Star,” which Ryan says she has not seen, that is the basis for the new film.

Audiences haven’t seen much of the multi-talented Ryan lately. She did pop up in her directorial debut “Ithaca,” a poorly reviewed 2015 adaptation of William Saroyan’s “The Human Comedy” with Tom Hanks (Ryan’s co-star in “Seattle” and “Mail”) and Ryan’s son Jack Quaid.

Her previous rom-com role, though, came over a decade before, in 2009’s “Serious Moonlight” opposite Timothy Hutton.

So where the heck has she been?

Ryan says she decided to take a break to focus on other aspects of her life. It’s an approach she feels makes for a healthier involvement in show business.

“It’s nice to think of (acting) as a job and not a lifestyle,” as she told People magazine. “And that is a great way of navigating it for me.”

Now with her return to the genre, Ryan dedicates “What Happens Later” to the late Ephron, the iconic writer and filmmaker who helped turn her into a star. Ephron died in 2012.

The new film is an R-rated release that pivots on two people who were college sweethearts — the worrywart Bill (“The X-Files’” David Duchovny) and the more live-in-the-magical-moment Willa (Ryan) — who reunite decades later when they get stranded for one night in a snowed-in airport, reliving their pasts and enduring cheesy airport-friendly covers of classic songs.

It opens Friday in area theaters.

In an interview with both stars (who received an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA to promote the film despite the actors strike), Ryan recalled what was so special about working with Ephron.

“It was really fun to be on her set,” Ryan recalls. “She was delighted to be a storyteller. It delighted her… . She would laugh to herself and hide her face and just wouldn’t be able to believe certain things were going on, on the things that she directed. Or that the movies she wrote…she just couldn’t believe that they came to life. They were in her imagination one morning and now they’re here with the whole crew having opinions.”

Her costar, also known for starring in the Showtime comedy “Californication” for several years, has pulled back from acting jobs of late as he focuses on his writing career, having published five novels.

But Duchovny has found his comeback working with Ryan the actor — who is “the best ever at this particular genre,” he says — and Ryan the filmmaker to be a joyful experience. But that didn’t mean they just horsed around and didn’t take what they were doing to heart.

“We get paid to play around,” Duchovny said. “You know, make believe. You can go on one side and say well that’s a stupid way to live your life. But we play seriously. The other part is you’ve got to take playing seriously. Like that’s an oxymoron. It doesn’t really make sense. But Meg’s own vibe, her personality is seriously playful. And that was perfect for this area.”

What needed to seriously work onscreen was the kinetic chemistry between the two stars. Given that Duchovny gets so often associated with his darker, mostly unromantic role of FBI agent Fox Mulder on the influential “The X-Files” series (although the relationship between Mulder and and FBI partner, Gillian Anderson’s Dana Scully, did turn romantic at times), he wouldn’t seem to be the obvious choice.

“It was like a leap of faith for Meg,” he said.

Ryan, though, dismisses that and said she was impressed by Duchovny, who indeed demonstrated his range in “Californication” for seven seasons. During their Zoom rehearsals prior to shooting in two locations in Bentonville, Arkansas, — the Northwest Arkansas National Airport and the Crystal Bridges art museum — an undeniable connection became event.

Since the bulk of the film rests entirely on their shoulders, it was essential those sparks flew when the cameras rolled.

“We just really had to be partners,” Ryan said. “We just had to be.”

“I guess it didn’t have to work,” Duchovny adds.

“It didn’t have to work,” Ryan agrees. “We’re just lucky it did.”

It’s that fluid banter between the two that clicks not only on the screen but during their promotional appearances, including stints on the talk show circuit.

Duchovny has appeared in romantic-themed films before, including 2000’s “Return to Me” with Minnie Driver, and has been a fan of rom-coms. But for the most part, he says, “There was a time when I wanted to kind of exist in that world but the opportunity wasn’t really there.”

So “it was a dream come true” when he landed the part opposite Ryan.

Given that they enjoyed working together and respect each other, would they want to did it again? Their response shows the kind in-sync timing that suggests it’s a real possibility.

“I would do a movie with Meg every year if I could,” Duchovny says.

“I would do the same,” Ryan concurs, without missing a beat.

We’ll just have to see what happens later.

Contact Randy Myers at [email protected].