Knocked Up star hits back at script

The female star of one of the best received comedies of the year, Knocked Up, has revealed that she didn't enjoy making the film as much as critics and cinema-goers on both sides of the Atlantic enjoyed watching it.  Katherine Heigl (above) tells Vanity Fair magazine that the movie that catapulted her into the Hollywood A-list is "a little sexist. It paints the women as shrews, as humourless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys. It exaggerated the characters, and I had a hard time with it, on some days."

Heigl, a former model who until Knocked Up was best known for her role as Dr 'Izzie' Stevens in the TV medical drama series Grey's Anatomy, goes on: "I'm playing such a bitch; why is she being such a killjoy? Why is this how you're portraying women? Ninety-eight percent of the time it was an amazing experience, but it was hard for me to love the movie."

Knocked Up tells the story of a responsible, career-minded woman who, after one drunken night on the town, finds herself pregnant. Seth Rogen plays the goofball father-to-be who clashes with Heigl's over-controlling character after she decides reluctantly to keep the baby. Despite concerns that it appeared to be peddling a not very subtle line on behalf of America's pro-life lobby, the film received brilliant reviews, especially in Britain, and has made more than $200m at the box office worldwide.

As for Heigl, the success of the film plus an Emmy this year for her role in Grey's Anatomy, means she can now command $6m for a movie role, compared with the $300,000 she was paid for Knocked Up,  according to a source involved with the production. Heigl, 29, is set to marry singer Josh Kelley on December 23. Her next film will be another romantic comedy, 27 Dresses, due to be released in Britain next March. ·