A moviegoer proposed to his girlfriend at the premiere of Jason Segel's film The Five Year Engagement in Dublin, surprising the 500-strong audience. Jason Segel, who was in town to promote the film, officiated the wedding ceremony as he is an ordained minister. The couple said yes and Segel helped make the extravagant public proposal happen. He is currently dating actress Michelle Williams and seems happy in his relationship. Segel has had a successful career in Hollywood spanning over a decade, writing and starring in popular comedies, though he acknowledges that luck has played a role in his success.

1. “I think you’re the most
amazing woman I’ve ever met
in my life. I love you so, so much and I
can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with
you. Erin Evans, will you marry me?”
As popcorn fell from the open jaws of the
shushed crowd, a silence filled with disbelief
and excitement fell over the darkened
auditorium of Dublin’s Savoy Cinema.
The 500-strong crowd were witnessing quite
possibly the most extravagant proclamation of
love of 2012… and this was before the curtain
even drew for the premiere of Jason Segel’s
anti-chick flick, The Five Year Engagement.
We love a good ole love story here at
U Towers almost as much as we love our
Hollywood heartthrobs, so when moviegoer
Stephen Lawlor went down on one knee
before longtime love Erin... well, it’s all a bit
too much for a girl really!
It’s not often our Irish shores are graced
with Hollywood funnymen but despite having
kept us waiting, Jason Segel’s Irish stop-over
was worth every second. The star was in town
on two missions – to open his new film and,
most importantly, to assist in the marriage
proposal of the year.
And as an Ordained Minister with the
Universal Church of Life, there was no better
man for the job. So what if his title was
bought for $5 on the Internet? He’s already
married a couple on The Jay Leno Show, don’t
ya know. And yes, it’s legal. We think.
“I’m the world’s matchmaker – I gotta say,
I’m like cupid, I’m a modern day giant cupid,”
he enthused.
“I think my own proposal will be very
private so that when she says no, the
humiliation is solo,” quipped Segel.
Oh Jason, who would ever say no to you?
Still, a smart move on his part, as we
imagine girlfriend Michelle Williams is the
low-key kind of girl. Judging by the beaming
smile on her face since romance blossomed
between them three months ago, we don’t
think Jason has anything to worry about.
But what kind of girl does the How I Met
Your Mother star go for? And are there any
relationship deal breakers?
“My top three relationship deal breakers
are… rude to service staff. That’s a huge one
for me – if people are rude to waiters
and waitresses, that’s no good. If they
haven’t seen any of my movies, they
usually won’t date me and I think just
an overall sense of being nice is really
important to me.”
That’s the thing about Jason Segel;
he’s a very grounded man. What
you see on TV is what you get,
there are no airs or graces or any sign
of an inflated ego as one might
expect with a Hollywood star. He’s
genuinely a very nice man with
a very funny sense of humour, his
self-deprecating ways keeping his feet
planted firmly on the ground.
It’s been a bumpy road for Jason since
his debut in the short-lived comedy drama
Freaks and Geeks back in 2000. Twelve
years ago leading man status seemed like
wishful thinking but with the support of
Judd Apatow, the producer of the cult
TV series, Jason’s turned his hand to
writing and wrote himself roles in top
grossing films like Forgetting
Sarah Marshall and The
Muppets.
For a 32-year-old, Jason’s
CV is impressive. Alongside
co-writing The Muppets,
solo writing Forgetting Sarah
Marshall and penning the
music for Russell Brand’s Get
Him to the Greek, he’s also
starred alongside his buddies
Seth Rogan (Knocked Up),
Cameron Diaz (Bad Teacher)
Emily Blunt (Gulliver’s Travels) and Paul
Rudd (I Love You, Man).
So what advice can the star give to those
chasing Hollywood dreams? “Sadly, there’s
no secret except for stick-to-it-iveness. You
really have to ride out this terrible wave
and keep working hard. That’s what I had
to do and luckily it worked out. It’s sad
but luck is such an important component
of so many things.”
And he has been lucky. His latest venture
is the-not-necessarily-a-chick-flick, The Five
Year Engagement, a romantic comedy that
gives a window into the lives of Tom (Segel)
and Violet (Emily Blunt), desperately trying
to squeeze a wedding amidst the chaos that is
the funny rollercoaster of life.
“We wrote this over five or six years and to
get to make it with such an amazing cast was
a real honour. I loathe romantic comedies and
so with this I’m trying to put a spin on the
genre that makes it tolerable for both men
and women. It’s got a little something for
everybody. I’m naked again so that’s for the
ladies,” Jason enthused.
And just in case you were wondering,
Erin said yes! U
The Five Year Engagement is in cinemas
nationwide now.
16 U MAGAZINE | 15 JULY
News
Diana Bunici catches up with Jason Segel in Dublin
We Love You,Man
news
8
From top:
Jason has built
himself a pretty
impressive CV;
with co-star
Emily Blunt
QUICKFIRE!My favourite time of year...
would be Christmas time.
I love it when… I’m doing
60 second interviews.
Something you didn’t
know about me… I didn’t
know anything about you
before this moment.
My ideal weekend… Sitting
on the porch in the country
listening to the radio.
My perfect date… My
perfect date is sitting on the
porch listening to the radio.
The best chat up line
I’ve ever used... Hey.
I’m Jason and I’m rich!
Favourite Film…
Broadcast News.
16U14news8d.indd 8 6/27/12 3:43:19 PM