Bette Midler Praises Mayim Bialik for Helping Make Beaches a Hit: ‘She Was Responsible’ for Success of Movie (Exclusive)

Bette Midler credits Mayim Bialik for helping make Beaches a hit. 

The 1988 drama tracks the years-long friendship between reserved lawyer Hillary (Barbara Hershey) and brassy showgirl C.C. (Midler) who meet as children in Atlantic City, become pen pals, forge a bond as young adults and navigate the ups and downs of life — children, marriage, divorce, illness — together.

In the film, future Blossom and The Big Bang Theory star Bialik, 48, played C.C. as a child in a few scenes. She donned a curly red wig that matched Midler’s mane, and projected the same confidence the “From a Distance” singer brings to all of her performances. 

Midler, who stars in the new comedy The Fabulous Four, tells PEOPLE she could “absolutely” see star quality in Bialik all those years ago, and says her spark helped make the movie what it is.

“Sometimes I feel that she was responsible for the success of that movie. I don't think that they could even believe how similar to me in quality she [was], how much like my quality she managed to capture,” continues Midler.

For the 30th anniversary of the film in 2018, Bialik shared memories of working on the iconic film.

“The director, Garry Marshall, and Bette had to approve everything about me for the movie,” Bialik wrote on her website Grok Nation. “Bette didn’t like how elaborate the initial choreography was of my singing/dancing number; she herself re-did it and taught me the moves you see in the final movie.”

Bialik recalls how they filmed in Los Angeles and in Coney Island, N.Y., which stood in for Atlantic City. 

“These were long and hot days filming in a very hot and heavy wig. My mom would get me a Nathan’s hamburger for lunch (I was not vegan at the time!), and I would usually nap in my tiny trailer during lunch,” she wrote.

“Early mornings on set sitting in the wig chair for a solid hour and make up for another hour or so coupled with long days in the heat were hard for a 12-year-old — I needed to nap!” Bialik continued.

“I know Beaches is so special to so many people. It is for me, too, but in a different way. It was this movie that changed my life and catapulted me into working on sitcoms, which determined the course of my career and life,” Bialik shared.

“Beaches is hard for me to watch because I’m awkward and my voice is annoying to me and that’s just the truth. But I am so honored to have been a part of this movie which has touched so many lives and hearts.”

While Beaches explored the complexities of friendship in a more dramatic way, Midler’s new movie, The Fabulous Four, looks at female connections through a more comical lens.

Midler plays Marilyn, a widow who reunites with her longtime friends (played by Sheryl Lee Ralph, Megan Mullally and Susan Sarandon) when she gets remarried in Key West, Fla. 

Expect jokes about smoking pot — and some potty-mouthed humor — from what Midler calls a “superb” cast.

The Fabulous Four is in theaters July 26.

For more on Bette Midler, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE.