Elizabeth Banks On 'Our Idiot Brother': 'Life's Too Short To Work With As*holes' (VIDEO)

While there are certainly legendary individual titans of comedy, whose talent can stand on its own amidst interchangeable co-stars and filmmakers, it is often that the most memorable and lasting laughs come from established groupings. From the Three Stooges to the Marx Brothers, Monty Python and Laugh In to "Saturday Night Live" and its various generations, the tricky alchemy of humor is most potent with a number of talents adding their own elements to the mix.

These days, a loose grouping of comedy actors and actresses can trace their roots to a few late 90s/early 2000s projects, originating from the minds of Judd Apatow and the then-young bucks behind improv groups such as "The State" and 2nd City. From those roots they all began working together quite early, with their participants, now mega-stars, frequently co-starring in each other's films.

One of the original, star-studded films that helped introduce a number of today's stars was "Wet Hot American Summer." Featuring Michael Ian Black, Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Michael Showalter, Christopher Meloni, Ken Marino, Bradley Cooper and Elizabeth Banks, among others, it became a cult classic and launching pad for a number of careers (and may generate a brand new prequel). This week, Rudd and Banks -- who had a memorable, wildly sloppy make out scene -- feature together in a new film, the indie comedy, "Our Idiot Brother."

According to Banks, that's no accident; as she told HitFix.com, she likes working with people she loves -- because life is too short to work with assholes.

It's reminiscent of what she said about that "Wet Hot" reunion; it was her first big break, and she told EW that, "Look, any chance to get that group of people all together in a room I will take. It's been such a blessing on my life that I got to be included in that circle of people."