Cameron Diaz says ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake is the best person to star as her with her in Bad Teacher, and she’s “thrilled” about the pairing.

“We’re thrilled to have him,” Cameron told Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush on the Oscars red carpet on Sunday night. “He’s the best person for the job. He’s going to be hilarious.”

Timberlake was recently cast in the film, which is directed by Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story). He stars opposite Diaz, who plays a foulmouthed middle school teacher that, after getting dumped, makes a play for a colleague’s boyfriend. Timberlake is the boyfriend. Lucy Punch is the colleague.  Jason Segel, Molly Shannon and Modern Family’s Eric Stonestreet are also in the cast.

Diaz praised Timberlake’s comedic prowess, saying, “He’s clearly a very talented comedian, look at his Saturday Night Live [skits].” She continued, “He’s fantastic, he’s going to be so great.”

Aside from bringing the laughs alongside Andy Samberg on SNL, the former ‘N Sync member has also had a handful of supporting film roles, including parts in Black Snake Moan and The Love Guru. He is also starring  in David Fincher’s The Social Network, which tells the story of the founding of Facebook. According to Variety, it was this performance that led Columbia pictures to cast him in Bad Teacher.

Diaz and Timberlake dated for four years, from 2003-2007.