( EW.com ) -- The challenges involved in bringing `` Men in Black 3 '' to the screen -- the ever changing script , the production delays , the budget that reportedly soared past $ 215 million -- are not exactly a secret . If the thing had been a cakewalk , odds are we would n't be sitting here 10 full years after the last installment of the sci-fi-comedy series , gearing up for the new film 's May 25 release . But co-star Josh Brolin had his own personal slice of misery to contend with in the making of `` MiB3 '' : honing his impression of Tommy Lee Jones . The film 's storyline has Will Smith 's Agent J traveling back in time to 1969 to prevent an alien baddie named Boris ( played by Jemaine Clement ) from assassinating Jones ' Agent K -- and the critical job of playing that younger incarnation of K fell to Brolin . `` That was the toughest thing I 'll ever do , '' Brolin tells EW . `` I 'm literally reliving it with you right now , and I 'm so happy to be able to laugh about it . '' Brolin had worked with Jones twice before -- in the 2007 films In the Valley of Elah and `` No Country for Old Men '' -- and gotten a chance to study the actor 's very specific and sometimes , shall we say , prickly vibe up close . `` The ambiance that Tommy creates on a set is just unparalleled , '' Brolin says , laughing . `` The tension is f***ing amazing . I just found it fascinating . I grew up with a lot of cowboys , so it does n't affect me as deeply as it would the urban norm . I just laugh at it . But it 's still uncomfortable . That 's his genius : 'How can I make this the most uncomfortable moment anybody has ever had in the world ? ' There 's no way he 's thinking it -- it 's just intrinsic . '' From observing Jones , Brolin had developed a decent impression of the actor 's deadpan , laconic , staccato way of speaking that , by chance , he shared with `` Men in Black 3 '' director Barry Sonnenfeld one night at a dinner with the Coen brothers during the `` No Country '' shoot . It was good enough to convince Sonnenfeld that Brolin was the only choice to play the young Agent K. Still , Brolin was n't initially convinced he quite fit the part : `` It 's like , 'Why me ? ' I do n't know if it 's the Americana people see in me and Tommy . Or if it 's the size of our skulls . Or if there 's a Cro-Magnon feeling when you look at us -- sort of a silverback thing . '' Whatever their resemblance , the prospect of going from a casual impression of Jones to a full-fledged performance as young K was terrifying , Brolin says . `` I did lots and lots of practicing [ in the months leading up to production ] , '' he says . `` I was just sitting there with Garage Band [ recording myself ] going , 'Hey , how ya doin ' ? Hey , how ya doin ' ? ' -- - over and over , for days and months , thinking , ' I 'm going to sound like an idiot in this film . ' I was down in Mexico at one point with a buddy of mine and I was so frustrated , I got so drunk -- the stress level was just so high . I never felt like I had it , and I still do n't . '' By all accounts ( and judging from the movie 's trailer ) , Brolin nailed the performance , much as he did with his well-received turn as George W. Bush in Oliver Stone 's `` W. '' `` You do n't want it to be showboat-y , '' Brolin says . `` The hope is after five minutes everyone will forget they 're watching me doing Tommy playing K and just kind of lend themselves to the story . '' But what was Jones ' own take on Brolin 's performance ? Brolin is n't quite sure . `` I did n't ever do Tommy in front of Tommy , '' he says . `` I know Tommy just saw the movie -- and his only comment was that he really liked [ actor Michael Stuhlbarg 's character ] Griffin . '' He laughs . `` Tommy 's tough . '' See the full article at EW.com . CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly . © 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved .
Josh Brolin talks about playing a younger Tommy Lee Jones in `` MiB3 '' ` ` That was the toughest thing I 'll ever do , '' Brolin tells EW . ` 'It's not like you can just go into your wardrobe and change it up every day because it's so different from what you're used to doing on screen.