Melissa Mccarthy does her own stunts because it's just funnier.

Melissa, who starred in television shows such as Gilmore Girls and Samantha Who? before she enjoyed huge success with hit movie Bridesmaids in 2011. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe for her turn as Jude Law's kickass Moneypenny style assistant in movie Spy, and battled ageism and body shaming to become Hollywood's third highest paid female star in 2015, according to Forbes.com.

The unlikely action heroine, who starred alongside Sandra Bullock in female cop buddy movie The Heat which grossed $158 million , likes to give 100 per cent commitment to whatever she's doing - including completing her own stunts.

"I am always so bruised after a movie I look like someone rolled me down a mountain!" she laughs in an interview with British newspaper Metro. "But I think it means more to audiences, and it's funnier, if I'm the one doing the stunts."

When asked if she's the Tom Cruise of comedy, the actress smiled: "Ha - he's really good at it. I'm just dumb enough to be, 'Yeah let's do it! Ow! Oh my god, my back.' I'm a complete dingbat."

Melissa's success in The Heat helped pave the way for the controversial all-female Ghostbusters reboot, and some say she's helped to redefine the Hollywood mainstream. Her latest film The Boss beat superhero movie Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice when it topped the box office on its first weekend.

In The Boss Melissa plays Michelle Darnell, a rich, motivational businesswoman - a character the actress created as part of Los Angeles comedy troupe The Groundlings fifteen years ago.

"Michelle's whole vibe is that if you can work hard enough you can achieve it - if you're lazy, you won't," something the actress says she can relate to.

Modest Melissa, a mother of two children, credits her success to a strong work ethic inherited from her Irish Catholic family who farmed in Illinois, where "it was part of life to work hard, do a good job and have pride in your work."

So it's no surprise that as well as her movie work, the multi-tasking actress also has a production company with husband Ben Falcone, who is the director of The Boss, as well as a clothing line Seven7. And it seems that her early life lessons have spurred her on to achieve her current success.

"I played a lot of sports growing up - basketball and volleyball, although my main thing was tennis," she revealed. "Sport teaches you to push yourself as hard as you can and to be a good sportsman when you lose. You have to realize: 'I got outplayed today, so tomorrow I will try harder.'"

The Boss opens in the U.K. on Friday (10Jun16).