Jennifer Love Hewitt has some unlikely support for her racy new role in Lifetime movie The Client List.
“My mom’s like, ‘I’m so proud. You’re pole dancing and you’re going to play a prostitute. Awesome!'” Hewitt, 42, tells Entertainment Tonight. “It’s like, ‘Yeah, what you always dreamed about, mama!’ But you know, it’s a great part.”
Hewitt plays Samantha Horton in the drama, premiering tonight at 9 p.m./ET on Lifetime, about a former homecoming queen who resorts to prostitution to support her family through the recession. Cybill Shepherd stars as Samantha’s mother, Cassie.
“Given where we are economically, it’s an interesting story… this is the most recession-proof business there is!” says Hewitt, who starred in CBS’ Ghost Whisper until it was canceled in May. “It’s really a movie about the human condition, and the heart, and where life can take you.”
“[Samantha] has no choice at the end of the day but to give everything that she can in order to take care of her family,” adds Hewitt. “She really thinks she’s doing the best thing possible for them, and it just gets out of hand. … It takes her on a rollercoaster ride.”
To prep for the role, which she calls “empowering,” Hewitt took pole dancing classes “because it really, really gets you in shape [and] it also really teaches you about your inner sexuality.”
“[Samantha] has no choice at the end of the day but to give everything that she can in order to take care of her family,” adds Hewitt. “She really thinks she’s doing the best thing possible for them, and it just gets out of hand. … It takes her on a rollercoaster ride.”
To prep for the role, which she calls “empowering,” Hewitt took pole dancing classes “because it really, really gets you in shape [and] it also really teaches you about your inner sexuality.”