J.Lo back to high-profile

Jennifer Lopez doesn’t see her new film “The Back-up Plan” as a comeback.

Though she took a break from movies after 2007’s “El Cantante,” Lopez worked on her music, produced TV and film projects and gave birth to twins.

“I was just home, kind of on maternity leave,” she says.

Knowing she was going back before the cameras did motivate her to stick to the diet and exercise regiments she started after the babies were born.

In the film, Lopez plays a single woman who wants a baby so much she gets artificially inseminated. Then she meets the man of her dreams, played by Australian hunk Alex O’Loughlin.

Lopez could relate to the script, having just experienced many of the same pregnancy moments.

It also appealed to the 40-year-old New York native because it blended traditional romantic comedy with the modern story elements of single parenting, social responsibility and being an independent woman.

Lopez opted for a romantic comedy because she’s had success with “The Wedding Planner,” “Maid in Manhattan” and “Monster-in-Law.”

The key to a good romantic comedy, she says, is playing the role as real as possible.

“When you do that, it’s funnier and you really get the emotional beats,” she says. “I do that whether it’s a drama or a comedy. But with a comedy I just have a little more fun.”

The genre has also given Lopez her biggest film flop, 2003’s “Gigli.” But that was the rare bump in a successful and diverse career which includes selling more than 35 million albums worldwide, best-selling fragrances and her own clothing line.

Now she must deal with the J.Lo empire as a working mom. She got a glimpse of that challenge when she had to leave her 2-year-old twins to do interviews for the movie. They begged her not to go.

“It was tough. I’m just going to have to figure it out as I go along,” she says.

“I told them, ‘I will be home and the sun will still be up.’ I tried to explain to them I wouldn’t be away that long. But, it’s difficult.”

The birthday bunch

Songwriter Jerry Leiber is 77. Actor Al Pacino is 70. Singer Bjorn Ulvaeus (ABBA) is 65. Actress Talia Shire is 64. Actor Hank Azaria is 46. Actress Renee Zellweger is 41. Actor Jason Lee is 40. Singer Jacob Underwood (O-Town) is 30.