If you don’t immediately recognize Elizabeth Banks’ name, you probably recognize her face if you watch movies on a regular basis. That is, you’ll recognize Banks if you don’t confuse her with comedienne/talk-show host/author Chelsea Handler. (It’s an identity mix-up that happens to Banks often, she says.) Although Banks has been acting in movies and TV for several years, she had her big breakthrough year in 2008 by co-starring in the films “Definitely, Maybe,” “Role Models,” “W.” (as former first lady Laura Bush) “Meet Dave,” “Lovely, Still” and “Zack and Miri Make a Porno.”

On TV, Banks has had a guest-starring role on the sitcom “30 Rock,” as CNBC reporter Avery Jessup, who is in a love triangle with arrogant TV executive Jack Donaghy (played by Alec Baldwin) and his former high-school girlfriend Nancy Donovan (played by Julianne Moore). Banks says that the love triangle will be resolved in the “30 Rock’s” fourth-season finale, airing May 20 at 9:30 p.m. Eastern/Pacific Time on NBC. In addition to Banks having a busy career as an actress, she is a producer and has made her directorial debut in a still-untitled anthology feature film. During a telephone conference call with journalists, Banks shared her thoughts on her recent projects and how she is juggling them all.

Since you spend so much time with Alec Baldwin on the show what it is like working with him?

Everyone like wants to know that. I think he’s fantastic. First of all, he’s so charming it’s sort of ridiculous. And I think he’s working in a zone right now that I think for his career is really amazing. I mean, he’s so funny and they’ve really done such a great job with the Jack Donaghy character for him. And he seems very delighted by Tina and by the scripts. So I think he’s pretty happy there. It’s certainly – they certainly make a big effort to keep him happy there. And I hope I make – I hope he’s happy with me too.

You’ve done recurring roles on “30 Rock” and “Scrubs.” Do you ever see yourself settling down into a series or do you kind of like this dynamic of going back and forth between film and TV?

I’m very happy going back and forth right now. I really love playing multiple characters. , I’m not quite ready to commit to a single character for multiple years just yet. But that said, I never rule it out; life is long and you just never know. But it won’t be anytime soon.

In the season finale are we going to get to see a hint of Avery’s annual PMS retreat?

There is no scene that takes place in the fenced in area in the Adirondacks, unfortunately no. But I’m assuming it sort of comes from “The Red Tent,” the Anita Diamant book which is about how all the women whenever they get their period all have to go sit in the red tent and hang out with each other. I think that was the inspiration for the idea of the fenced-in area. I’d love to see what other ladies are there.

Are you going to have a face-off with Julianne Moore?

I will tell you that Julianne Moore and I do have a scene together. I don’t know if it’s quite the face-off that you’re expecting but we do have a scene together, so we meet in the finale.

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After her memorable role in The 40 Year Old Virgin, Elizabeth Banks is no stranger to comedy as Banks returns to her recurring 30 Rock character for the 30 Rock season finale. Although Elizabeth Banks will soon be seen with Russell Crowe in the Paul Haggis directed film, The Next Three Days, Banks steps back into 30 Rock on Thursday, May 20 for a love triangle between Jack (Alec Baldwin) and Nancy Donovan (Julianne Moore) and her CNBC anchor character, Avery Jessup.

For her latest appearance on 30 Rock, Elizabeth Banks joins big name guest stars Matt Damon and Michael Sheen along with SNL regular Jason Sudekis for “I Do Do” that sees Tina Fey’s Liz Lemon meet the man of her dreams.

Ahead of 30 Rock, we snagged a few brief minutes with Elizabeth Banks to find out more about “I Do Do”, her 30 Rock guest spot, and what it was like on the 30 Rock set with so many stars.

THE DEADBOLT: How do you view the love triangle between Avery, Jack and Nancy?

ELIZABETH BANKS: Well, the best thing about it is that I never see Nancy, so I don’t even know who – You know, Jack has not revealed to me who his other dalliances are with. I think Jack and Avery are both grownups and I’m sure Avery feels competitive with this person, which is why she sort of put it to Jack that he needed to decide. But she’s a big girl and she’ll get over it whatever ends up happening.

THE DEADBOLT: What was it like on set with Matt Damon, Will Forte, and Michael Sheen?

BANKS: It’s pretty great. There were a lot of Oscar nominees on the set that day. I actually did not work with Matt Damon because his schedule got a little messed up and he ended up coming in after we had wrapped the season to shoot just with Tina Fey. So we actually worked with this photo double on the days. So I did not meet Matt Damon.

Michael Sheen is a doll and I love Leslie. I think that’s a great character for him. I love him with Tina. I mean, Will Forte looks so amazing on the season finale, I can’t wait for people to see what he’s dressed as. I took about eight photos of myself with him because I’m just so excited to have evidence that I was there when he was dressed the way he’s going to be dressed Thursday night.

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Even some of Hollywood’s most in-demand actresses have to occasionally beg for work. Take Elizabeth Banks. The star of 40-year-old Virgin, W., and Zack and Miri Make a Porno tells me that her upcoming 30 Rock gig resulted from her reaching out to the Emmy-winning comedy and not the other way around. “I definitely put feelers out, like, ‘I would love to be on your show,’” she confesses. “And they did it. They made it happen! I’m a huge fan, so this is a dream come true.”

Banks, who is on board for at least four episodes (the first of which airs in February), plays a right-leaning financial guru who falls for fellow conservative Jack (Alec Baldwin) after he appears as a guest on her CNBC talk show. “She’s basically Sean Hannity in a skirt,” she explains. “What’s great about her relationship with Jack is they’re equals. She’s not some [pretty] young thing that he has a fling with. She really challenges him.”

Despite a string of sitcom appearances — her Rock role follows stints on Modern Family and Scrubs — Banks says she’s “having too much fun making movies” to commit to a TV show full-time. To wit, she just wrapped the Paul Haggis thriller The Next Three Days (she plays Russell Crowe’s incarcerated wife). “The [TV jobs] are a really fun thing to do between movie gigs,” she says. “On Monday I’m hanging out of a car [filming Three Days], and on Tuesday I’m working with two national treasures, Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin — not to mention Tracy Morgan.”

From the Ausiello Files

Hey all. Capone in Chicago here, with an important announcement.

Elizabeth Banks is the most beautiful woman in the world. On top of that, she’s a gifted comic actor, she swears like sailor both on and off screen, she’s got a great laugh, and she’s given a steady string of solid performances in recent years that has made her one of the most sought after actresses of her generation. I distinctly remember noticing her for the first time in WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, and she’s gone on to star in nearly all of the films from the men and women who made MTV’s “The State,” including THE BAXTER and the upcoming ROLE MODELS. She’s played Betty Brant in all three SPIDER-MAN movies, Jeff Bridges wife in SEABISCUIT, and the insatiable Beth in THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN. The woman stole my heart in the romantic-comedy SLITHER (that’s a joke, by the way, but Banks is awesome in this film), she looked great in an elf costume in FRED CLAUS, and she made Ryan Reynolds one lucky S.O.B. as one of his love interests in DEFINITELY, MAYBE.

And considering what I’ve been hearing about the screenplay for Oliver Stone’s W., I think Banks’ comic skills may come in very handy playing Laura Bush. By my count, Banks will be seen in three more movies before the year is out, including Kevin Smith’s ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO. She plays Miri, a woman who self-admittedly likes to fuck. Considering the X-rated nature of Smith’s plot about a best friends who decide the make an amateur porn to make some money, Banks feels like the ideal, open-minded, fearless lady to embody Miri. You only need re-watch the “I’m Fucking Seth Rogen” video on YouTube to know that the woman is utterly without boundaries.

This interview was conducted literally mere minutes after Banks and the rest of the ZACK AND MIRI panel members stepped off stage at Comic-Con. We were literally sitting behind the stage. So here is the woman I will forever refer to as simply “Banks” because she told me I could.

Elizabeth Banks: So who are you with?

Capone: Ain’t It Cool News.

EB: Love it. Love Ain’t It Cool.

Capone: Have you been to Comic-Con before?

EB: Yeah, I came for SLITHER.

Capone: Of course, and you’re my hero for being in SLITHER, because it’s one of the greatest times I had in the movie theater that year.

EB: It is a great movie, I know. It’s one of those marketing debacles I think doomed it to fail. It was really funny, but they didn’t know whether it was a comedy or a horror movie. “What do we do?”

Capone: In talking to Seth Rogen just before the panel, we got to talking about how ZACK AND MIRI almost inadvertently tackles the serious economic crunch that a lot of people are going through right now.

EB: I know, the economy is a mess, and that’s what the movie is about. Someone asked me earlier if I could relate to Miri, and I grew up lower-middle class. We had days where we went to grandma’s house to take baths, and it was like “Yay, we’re going to grandma’s house to take a bath!” But it was because we didn’t have hot water, which my parents didn’t want to tell us. So instead we had fun nights at grandma’s house. I totally get it. It makes sense to me that these guys feel as desperate as they do. Kevin does a good job of writing out the circumstances for them but not taking things so seriously. It’s just porn; it’s just people fucking, you know? Let’s do it; let’s make money.

[At this point, not realizing that there's an interview going on, Traci Lords interrupts our conversation to say good-bye to Elizabeth. As Traci is about to leave, Elizabeth says…]

You look gorgeous. That was really fun; they really love you in there. [Turns to me] Cultural icon Traci Lords. Woohoo!

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The New York Times has a video interview with Elizabeth that you can view on Youtube – or stream it below!