Hilary Duff Talks 'Beauty and the Briefcase'

After a number of successful guest spots on shows like 'Ghost Whisperer,' 'Law & Order: SVU' and 'Gossip Girl,' Hilary Duff is headed back to the small screen -- this time, in the ABC Family movie 'Beauty and the Briefcase.'

In it, Duff plays Lane, an aspiring journalist who goes undercover for Cosmo magazine to see if she can find true love in the male-dominated world of business. Along the way she meets a number of potential suitors, including the hunky Liam ('The OC''s Chris Carmack) and her co-worker, Seth, played by 'Kyle XY''s Matt Dallas.

In preparation for the movie (premiering Sunday at 8PM), AOL TV spoke to Duff about her role, getting engaged to hockey player Mike Comrie and whether the upcoming 'Bonnie and Clyde' movie is still happening.After a number of successful guest spots on shows like 'Ghost Whisperer,' 'Law & Order: SVU' and 'Gossip Girl,' Hilary Duff is headed back to the small screen -- this time, in the ABC Family movie 'Beauty and the Briefcase.'

In it, Duff plays Lane, an aspiring journalist who goes undercover for Cosmo magazine to see if she can find true love in the male-dominated world of business. Along the way she meets a number of potential suitors, including the hunky Liam ('The OC's' Chris Carmack) and her co-worker, Seth, played by 'Kyle XY's' Matt Dallas.

In preparation for the movie (premiering Sunday at 8PM), AOL TV spoke to Duff about her role, getting engaged to hockey player Mike Comrie and whether the upcoming 'Bonnie and Clyde' movie is still happening.

I think the best way to describe your character, Lane, would be a young Carrie Bradshaw.
[Laughs] That's a good way to do it, yeah. She's definitely effervescent, and colorful and driven. She has her heart on her sleeve, and she's just working hard to get what she wants.

Did you read the book before hand?
I did do my research, but I did not read the book. I read the script, because I had some girlfriends that loved the series and I think that really motivated me to pay attention to the script. And I kind of fell in love, and didn't need to read the book to know that I wanted to play the part.



In the movie, Lane struggles to find true love. But in real life, you seem to have found your happy ending. Have you had time to move forward with your wedding plans?
You know what? I'm not just saying this: I seriously haven't. I haven't done one thing. I've been busy! I really haven't ... I'm so excited to start planning and meeting with people. I think it's gonna be a really fun process, but I'm not gonna rush it. I want to take my time and enjoy it. We both kind of have a laid-back attitude about it.

Have you set a date yet?
We have not, no. It should be awhile. We both have crazy schedules, so trying to find the perfect time for both of us might be a little complicated.

You've done a lot of television lately. Any plans to go back?
I was seriously thinking about it for awhile. Last year, I had a development deal with NBC, and we were trying to find the perfect project for me ... I was really driven to get back on TV. I did a thing on 'Law & Order: SVU' and then on 'Gossip Girl.' And I loved it. I really liked the lifestyle of knowing that I'm going to work every day and knowing that I get to go home at night and sleep in my bed is really appealing to me. I found this project, and there's a few other things that I want to do. I don't know if signing a six-year commitment to be on TV and play the same character is what I want. But little arcs on TV shows I think is a dream job for every actress, because you get to constantly challenge yourself.

You have a few young-adult novels coming out soon, including 'Elixir.' What can you tell us about them?
Well, right now it's planned to be two books, and hopefully it will be more than that, and a movie and all that exciting stuff. We've had people calling to option it already, which is so exciting. We haven't even finished writing it yet and people are interested in making it a movie. It's been a huge creative outlet for me, and totally different from showing up to work every day and playing a character. I get to sit there and come up with new ideas and just kind of write it down and kind of like, hash out a story. It's been really fun.

What's the status on the 'Bonnie and Clyde' movie? Is it still happening?
Hopefully. I don't know. We've been waiting for about a year and a half now. I'm still attached to the project, and Kevin Zegers is set to play Clyde. He's such a great actor. I love him. It's funny. He did an arc on 'Gossip Girl' right after I did, and I just love him. So hopefully, something will happen there, but right now it's kind of on the backburner.

So you guys haven't started filming yet?
No, we haven't. And we don't even have a date to start. That's what's so hard. Information gets leaked these days, and then if things don't end up happening, or if they take years to happen -- which is really normal for a movie -- you're kind of stuck saying, "No. Not yet, not yet, not yet." And that's been the case with this one.

You've been in Hollywood for years. What's your secret to success?
Wouldn't it be easy if there was a handbook that told you all the right moves to make and the things to do? There definitely is not. I think I've made my fair share of mistakes, but I've been really lucky to keep a respectful image and have people hopefully just stay interested in me and what I'm doing and not too much of the me in my everyday life. I try to live really privately. And then the people around me have helped me make smart decisions and keep my feet on the ground.