American comedian Amy Poehler admitted she landed a great job being paid to be happy in new movie Inside Out.

The Parks And Recreation star walked the red carpet in London’s Leicester Square along with director Pete Docter and co-star John Ratzenberger at the film’s UK premiere.

The Disney Pixar animation takes place inside the head of a young girl called Riley, with her five core emotions of Joy, Fear, Sadness, Anger and Disgust taking on the lead roles of the film. Amy plays the voice of Joy.

She said: “It was easy to feel joyful because I was working on a Pixar movie which I was really excited about doing, so it was a really nice gig to be paid to be happy.”

Amy Poehler signing autographs at Inside Out premiere
Fans are clearly excited for a Pixar film starring Amy – almost as excited as she is (Ian West/PA)

Amy insisted joy was her most dominant emotion as she met fans on the sunny Sunday morning in London.

She said: “Today my strongest emotion is definitely joy because I’m really excited that the film is coming out in the UK. I can’t wait for people to see it. It’s a beautiful film.”

Amy Poehler and John Ratzenberger
Amy with fellow cast member John Ratzenberger – a Pixar stalwart who’s voiced, among others, Hamm in Toy Story (Ian West/PA)

The 43-year-old actress has starred as Leslie Knope in hit US sitcom Parks And Recreation for seven seasons. The show came to an end this year and Amy just received her sixth Primetime Emmy nomination for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series, although she has never won.

She said: “We’re just happy to be invited to the party and have a reason to see each other again. I miss everyone so much, I’m just really excited to see them and drink with them and celebrate.”

Inside Out will be released in UK cinemas on Friday July 24.