The Holiday director reveals how she persuaded Lindsay Lohan to feature in film

Nancy Meyers seems to have plenty of famous pals in her phone book to give a ring whenever she needs a favour.

So, when she had to find someone to lend her a hand in The Holiday, she called on an old friend - Lindsay Lohan.

You can watch her cameo here:

The classic Christmas film - which was written, produced and directed by Meyers - follows the journey of two women on either sides of the pond who swap lives over the festive period to escape their heartbreak after bad breakups.

Iris Simpkins (Kate Winslet) jets off to sunny LA to live in a Hollywood mega-mansion while fleeing the news that her long-term-but-non-committal lover has just got engaged.

On the other hand, Amanda Woods (Cameron Diaz) has just found out that her boyfriend has been bonking his secretary, so she boots him out before heading to a cosy cottage in Surrey over Christmas.

They both end up finding love on each other's door step; need I remind you of the entrance of movie hunks Jude Law and Jack Black?

Although we already know The Holiday boasts a star-studded cast, a lot of people seem to have forgotten some of the incredible stars which took on supporting roles in the film.

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Dustin Hoffman ended up with a cameo in the movie that was completely unplanned after spotting the crew filming a scene between Winslet and Black in a DVD shop.

And some die-hard The Holiday fans might recall that The Office's John Krasinski and Bad Moms star Kathryn Hahn also featured in the festive film, as Amanda's colleagues.

The trio sit down to watch the latest version of a trailer they have been working on for the fake cheesy action film Deception - which starred Lindsay Lohan and James Franco.

But how did Meyers manage to persuade Lohan to offer her services up for The Holiday?

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Eight years before, the pair had already worked together on the set of Disney's remake of The Parent Trap, which was also directed and co-written by the 74-year-old filmmaker.

Back in 2006, she revealed to ComingSoon.net: "I know Lindsay because I directed The Parent Trap and I told her she owes me everything so I made her do it.

"I called her and said, ‘You have to do this for me', but she was sweet about it, she was totally there."

Meyers maintained a close relationship with the star over the years - and Lohan thanked her for giving her 'the opportunity of a lifetime' on the 20th anniversary of The Parent Trap.

As for Franco, the director had met him at a few dinner parties, explaining they'd shared mutual friends.

Adding: "I knew him a little bit. I asked him if he would do it and it turned out Lindsay and James knew each other and it was really fun."