Hugh Grant watched “Love Actually” with his wife and took note of its elements of “pain”

• Hugh Grant and his wife Anna Eberstein recently watched their favorite holiday romantic comedy and noted how it included aspects of “pain” and “suffering.”
• A large portion of the cast came back together for a mini-Love actually sequel in 2017.
• Grant also acknowledged in the News special that he “hates” the concept of his famous dance scene.

Hugh Grant and his wife Anna Eberstein recently watched their favorite holiday romantic comedy and noted how it included aspects of “pain” and “suffering.”

Grant, 62, revealed to presenter Diane Sawyer on the news unique. The Laughter & Secrets of Love Actually: 20 Years Later that he and Anna had watched Love Actually “drunkenly.”

“It comes from the heart — it’s true,” he said of the movie’s themes. “And I did drunkenly watch a bit of Love Actually a few months ago with my wife, and she was the one who said, ‘Oh look, it’s all about pain; it’s all about suffering.’ ”

And about awkwardness and minor rejections and disappointments in yourself, continued 76-year-old Sawyer. Yes, Grant affirmed.

Grant and writer/director Richard Curtis collaborated on the films Four Weddings and a Funeral 1994, Notting Hill 1999, and Bridget Jones’s Diary 2001. According to Curtis, 66, Grant is “my luckiest break.”

“I don’t even know if I’d have a career without Hugh, so I’m very grateful he came along,” said Curtis, adding, “His crankiness isn’t just pretended. He’s often cranky and often unhappy, but he’s also the only person in the world who’s never sent me a text that hasn’t made me laugh.”

Grant praised Curtis’ writing, telling Sawyer that it was “Richard on steroids” and “a little bit insane.” Added, “However, you must keep in mind that when he writes about love, he truly means it. And that is very uncommon.”

The hour-long special, which premieres on Hulu on Wednesday, stars Emma Thompson as Karen, Grant as David/the prime minister, Laura Linney as Sarah, Bill Nighy as Billy Mack, Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Sam, Olivia Olson as Joanna, and more. Curtis also appears, and Martine McCutcheon provides a message (Natalie).

Along with the late Alan Rickman, Liam Neeson, Keira Knightley, Colin Firth, Andrew Lincoln, Rodrigo Santoro, Lucia Moniz, Martin Freeman, Kris Marshall, and Joanna Page, other actors who appeared in the 2003 holiday movie include Abdul Salis, Gregor Fisher, Heike Makatsch, Abdul Salis, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Denise Richards, Billy Bob Thornton, January Jones, Elisha Cuthbert, Shannon Elizabeth, Claudia Schiffer, and Rowan Atkinson all made appearances in the romantic comedy.

A large portion of the cast came back together for a mini-Love actually sequel in 2017. The 10-minute version, written and produced once more by Curtis, was a component of Comic Relief’s annual Red Nose Day, a campaign to raise money for kids that attracts big-name comedians.

Grant also acknowledged in the News special that he “hates” the concept of his famous dance scene. In the moment in question, The Pointer Sisters’ “Jump” serves as the background music as Grant’s character David, aka the prime minister, breaks it down throughout his apartment at 10 Downing Street.

“I saw it in the script and I thought, ‘Well, I’ll hate doing that,’ ” he said. “I didn’t fancy doing the dance at all, let alone rehearsing it.”

“He kept saying no,” added Curtis, joking, “I think he was hoping I’d get ill or something and we’d say, ‘Oh, well, what a shame, we’ll have to lose that dancing sequence.’ ”

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