She may be starring as Ursula the Sea Witch in Disney’s highly-anticipated live-action filmThe Little Mermaid, butMelissa McCarthywould jump at the chance to play one of her own beloved characters again.

“I would do aBridesmaidssequel this afternoon, right now,” she tellsPEOPLE in this week’s cover story. “That group of women was the most magical thing ever. Almost all of us were really good friends already. I think it was such a magical time.”

For more of McCarthy’s exclusive interview, pick up this week’s issue ofPEOPLEon newsstands Friday.

Melissa McCarthy for PEOPLE.Ruven Afanador

MELISSA MCCARTHY PEOPLE BEAUTIES COVER 2023

Even if the cast are “all in our nineties and [writers] Kristen [Wiig] and Annie [Mumolo] are like, ‘Should we team back up?’ I’d be like, ‘Yes. Yeah, we should,'” the actress, 52, allows.

Her favorite memories from the production? “Oh my God. Just being around that many funny people where truly it was like people dropping to the ground because we couldn’t get air in,” she recalls. “From a distance, it must have looked like we all had food poisoning because there was just times where we’d be like… You can’t be around that group of humans and not just be beside yourself.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Suzanne Hanover/Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock

Bridesmaids - 2011

McCarthy admits the cast was a bit “hesitant” to shoot one of the most memorable scenes in the film when the group of friends all go wedding dress shopping. “It just ended up being so funny. Also, just Kristen shoving 72 Jordan almonds in her mouth. There was a take where she must have had 40 in there,” the actress says. “And we were like, ‘Kristen’s going to choke.’ It was also terribly unprofessional acting because anyone who wasn’t on-camera was usually bent over and just shaking. None of us were behaving. Yeah, that and the dogs, I did enjoy all the dogs.”

Ruven Afanador

Melissa McCarthy PEOPLE BEAUTIES

The Little Mermaidswims into theaters May 26.

source: people.com