Kristen Wiig will be busy after 'SNL' – USATODAY.com break on kristen wiig

By Scott Bowles, USA TODAY

& 13; Updated

Kristen Wiig's tears during her departure from Saturday Night Live over the weekend may not last long. She's got a full big-screen slate in front of her.

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  By Evan Agostini, AP

  Kristen Wiig's movie prospects have gone way up after her success with 'Bridesmaids.'

By Evan Agostini, AP

Kristen Wiig's movie prospects have gone way up after her success with 'Bridesmaids.'

Wiig, who had a final dance with co-stars during SNL's concluding skit (led by Mick Jagger), has high prospects in film. She's already scored a big hit in the comedy Bridesmaids.

"She reminds me of Will Ferrell with her fearlessness and almost complete lack of vanity when it comes to making comedy," says Hollywood.com's Paul Dergarabedian.

"She's not afraid to get her hands dirty," says Dergarabedian, who adds that she "also has a great slapstick side to her."

She'll get to put that on display with a half-dozen films slated through 2014:

Imogene (later this year). Wiig is a playwright who attempts suicide to win back her ex, only to find herself under the guardianship of her gambling-addicted mother.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013). Wiig teams with Ben Stiller for this contemporary take on a timid photo manager (Stiller) whose life turns upside down when a critical negative goes missing.

Despicable Me 2 (2013). Wiig provides the voice of Miss Hattie in this sequel to the Steve Carell comedy that continues the dastardly plans of criminal mastermind Gru (Carell).

Freezing People Is Easy (2013). Wiig pairs with Paul Rudd in this comedy about a man's wild experiments in the burgeoning field of cryogenics in the 1960s.

The Comedian (2013). Wiig again pairs with a heavy-hitter, this time Robert De Niro. He plays an insult comic who finds his career on the downward slide.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014). Wiig reprises her voice role as Ruffnut, one half of a pair of twins who argue to the point of violence — much to the chagrin of warriors hoping to train their dragons.

"She has this unique Lucille Ball-type accessibility and humor that makes her particularly appealing to women," Dergarabedian says. "That has already worked wonders for her on the big screen, as Bridesmaids so clearly demonstrated.

"She could be the new voice of comedy in film, both as a writer and performer, given her seemingly universal appeal."

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