While many know that Juliette Lewis, 38, the new star of NBC's The Firm, inspired by the 1993 Tom Cruise film, is starting to receive props for her acting talents, many forget that she dated Brad Pitt back before the Jennifer Aniston — even the Gwyneth Paltrow! — days!

Years later, Lewis was cast in the romantic comedy The Switch, starring Jason Bateman and Aniston, as Aniston's character's quirky best friend. Aniston had a major hand in casting Lewis for the role. "Well, she's a producer on the movie, so she had a lot to say on who was gonna play her BFF," Lewis told Access Hollywood Live on Thursday.

The two hit it off during filming. "What's wonderful about her is she's as lovely as you'd want her to be," Lewis said. "She just has no airs, and she's very down to earth." As far as Brad talk went, however, the two gal pals weren't interested in reminiscing. "No, we did not gossip," she assured. "We're grown women, so we just worked and hung out."

A few years ago Lewis took a break from acting to focus on her band, Juliette and the Licks, before returning to the big screen with Drew Barrymore's Whip It, The Switch, and a highly acclaimed performance in last year's Conviction, also starring Hilary Swank and Sam Rockwell.

For now, Lewis is pumped about her migration to television. "We're all kind of in love with each other as a cast," she said of her costars, who include A Beautiful Mind's Josh Lucas and Battlestar Galactica 2004's Callum Keith Rennie and Tricia Helfer. "It's a really strong cast — a lot of suspense," she added.

You can catch The Firm Thursday nights at 10 p.m. on NBC.

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