Part of James' appeal as the everyman is his size, which is occasionally written into his story lines, as fans of "The King of Queens" already know.

While he said he doesn't mind the jokes, his mother is not a fan.

"If I do a movie where I have to have (a son) and it's a chubby kid, my mother is always like, 'You were never like that.' She gets so upset about it," he said.

It's his own kids, who are 7, 5 and 17 months, who have greatly influenced his professional decisions.

"I want to do movies that I'm proud of where my kids, at some point, can see and I can feel comfortable sitting there watching it with them," he said. "And just that move people. That make people feel a little bit better about themselves when they leave the theater."

James will next appear in "Little Boy" and "Grown Ups 2," which is due out in July 2013. He's also gearing up to star alongside Kevin Hart in "Valet Guys," the comedy he co-wrote about two valet parking attendants who witness a murder.