Ben Stiller, the Wilson brothers and Vince Vaughn are no longer the reigning kings of comedy. According to Vanity Fair, it’s Paul Rudd and Jason Segel.

With their new film I Love You, Man coming out March 20, Rudd and Segal have caught fire in the past with their films Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Knocked Up. They aren’t thrilled, however, with Vanity Fair dubbing them “comedy’s new legends.”

The two actors, along with former co-stars Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill, are featured on the cover of the magazine. Hill, Rogen and Segel were also photographed in flesh-colored body suits while Paul Rudd sniffed them.

Their latest film is about Peter Klaven (Rudd) who gets engaged to his girlfriend Zooey (Rashida Jones). But since Peter has no male friends, he searches for a best man. He meets Sydney Fife (Segel), whom he slowly develops a friendship with. The film is described as a “bromantic comedy.”

The Chronicle sat down with Rudd, Segel and the film’s writer and director John Hamburg about their new “bromantic” comedy, their beef with Vanity Fair and their ideal bromance in Chicago.

The Chronicle: How do you feel about being dubbed “comedy’s new legends” by Vanity Fair?

Jason Segel: Not good.

Paul Rudd: No. It’s not true, and it’s farther default. Let the backlash begin.

JS: It’s a gross overstatement. I’ve done one successful movie. That does not a legend make.

PR: It’s very flattering. It’s flattering to be in that magazine.

JS: Yeah, I never thought I’d be on the cover of Vanity Fair; that’s insane.

PR: I get nervous when I see it.

If you aren’t the new legends of comedy, who is?

JS: See, I think “new legend” is like a … what’s the word? It’s like jumbo shrimp? An oxymoron.

PR: I think we’re more the John Legends of comedy.

JS: I don’t think you can be a “new legend.” I think you kind of have to become a legend after 40 years; that’s when you start to be a legend.

John Hamburg: A legend is when you’re, like,  living in Palm Springs and you haven’t made a movie in 28 years. Then you’re like, “That guy was a legend!”

PR: You know who I think is a great legend? Johnny Appleseed.

JH: Yeah! Paul Bunyan?

JS: Paul Bunyan.

PR: ‘Cause, you know, when Bunyan was young he was just regular old Paul with his big blue ox. He had the big beard, and he was wielding that ax.

JS: And foot problems.

PR: But he was just plain old Paul to everyone who knew him in the neighborhood. It wasn’t until much later, after his death, that the legend of Paul Bunyan really came to fruition.

Going off of that…

JH: Can we talk about Paul Bunyan a little more?

About the photo in Vanity Fair. Why the body suits? Why not full frontal?

JS: Thank goodness that’s actually not the cover. They thought about that as the cover for a while. The cover is us in barrels, just because they wanted people to buy the magazine. Why did we not go full frontal? Those are really close quarters. We were all laying up against each other and I think everyone’s fear is that there might be incidental contact, and next thing you know you’ve got a Jason Segel/Jonah Hill baby. And that’s not going to be pretty.

PR: I really was the fortunate one in that photo.

JS: Has Paul Rudd ever looked better? And maybe it’s the context. [Laughs]

JH: It’s true. You know, it’s not exactly Paul Rudd and Tyson Beckford in a two-shot.

JS: You walk away from that photo being like, “Wow, Paul Rudd is incredibly handsome.”

You guys have both worked on romantic comedies, but what was it like to work on a “bromantic” comedy?

PR: It was really fun. I loved it. I had a great time. I loved working with Jason. It was the third time we had, and it was the first time John and I had worked with each other. But we’ve known each other for a long time. [Gestures to Segel] I mean, look at this guy; it’s hard not to fall in love with him.

JS: I loved it because it really did have all the beats of a romantic comedy that I got to do with Paul, which is, I think, hilarious. We had a break-up scene, you know?

JH: He says very earnestly, “I think we should spend some time apart.”

JS: Yeah, and it was a proper romantic comedy with Paul, but then we also got to do the buddy elements that I love: Driving around on the Vespa and making each other laugh and trying to pick up chicks.

PR: [To Hamburg] And you were very conscious of not having it be like, in a way, a parody of a romantic comedy.

JH: Yeah, we didn’t want anybody to think, “Oh, it’s a romantic comedy with two friends.” We just wanted you to be, like, watching the story of two friends. But, of course, there’s the break-up scene, there’s the way they meet each other, there’s the “getting to know you” montage.  And hopefully if you’re caught up in the story, and these guys play it so real, that you’re just watching the story of a couple of guys.

JS: I think it’s a real testament to John’s directing ability, as well. It was the first movie that I’d ever done where there weren’t huge plot movements. It wasn’t like, “Now there’s the car accident and things change,” or whatever. It had to be like a very subtly crafted story about a relationship slowly developing and the problems that arise. And in the hands of a different director, it could’ve been boring or it could’ve been too silly. And John just nailed it.

JH: Thanks, Jason.

JS: Yeah, you know it.

JH: You’re a great person.

JS: Thanks, dude.

PR: I don’t agree.

What do you think of this term “bromantic comedy”?

JS: I think it’s a long time coming that you’ve seen a good male platonic comedy. That’s what we’re going for, and we got as close to the homo-erotic line as possible without crossing it, which I think we both found comedically satisfying.

PR: But it just seems to be the word of the moment, “bromantic,” because there have really been films throughout the decade that have fallen into that category but are never called bromantic.

JS: Oh, because it rhymes with romantic.

PR: Exactly.

JS: I see.

PR: What are some of your favorite bromantic films, Jason, from say, the ’80s?

JS: Well I don’t know if this is from the ’80s, but I think my favorite bromantic comedy is Midnight Cowboy.

PR: Oh, very good, yeah. I like Twins.

JS: Twins is pretty great; that’s a great buddy movie. Also, not bad as the follow-up, is Junior.

PR: Another great bromantic comedy.

JS: Dumb and Dumber.

PR: Schindler’s List. [Laughs]

Jason, do you sing in this movie?

JS: Oh, I do, I do, I do. I do sing in I Love You,  Man, a song that I did not write.  A song written by …

PR: Some of your fellow countrymen.

JS: Yup, that’s right. The holy trinity: Rush. So we sing a little Rush in there.

What would be your ideal bromantic date in Chicago?

JS: See, I’m not that familiar with Chicago, but how about a ball game at Wrigley Field and then a McFlurry at the old rock ‘n’ roll McDonalds?

PR: Well you’d have to get some pizza.

JS: Deep dish?

PR: Yeah, it’s Chicago; it’s Chicago-style pizza. There’s a big, huge … you know about the big war between New York pizza and Chicago pizza?

JS: Oh yeah, there’s a huge schism.

PR: So yeah, I’d want to get some Chicago-style pizza. I’d want to take in a game. I’d like to walk through the Art Institute, and I’d like to do it with Joe Mantegna.

JS: He’s not going to enjoy that Chicago-style pizza, Jack.

PR: No, he’s a Chicago guy!

JS: Is he?

PR: He’s the mayor of Chicago.

JS: No, he’s not.

PR: [Gary] Sinise looks at Joe Mantegna and says, “That guy’s from Chicago.”

JH: Al Capone looks at Joe Mantegna and says, “He’s the real Chicago guy.”

PR: Dennis Franz models his movements and vocal patterns after Joe Mantegna.

JS: Wow. Oh, you know, I was thinking about the poor man’s Joe Mantegna, Danny Aiello.

PR: I thought you were thinking of the Joe man’s Joe Mantegna, Joe Montana.

JS: Yes. San Fran.

PR: Or Ray LaMontagne.

JS: Yes. [To me] Hey, you look a little like Ray LaMontagne.