PERSON
Julia Roberts
80 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (80)
- #001
She refused to appear in The Proposal (2009) unless Disney offered her a higher salary; in the end Disney hired Sandra Bullock for less money than it had offered Roberts, and the film became one of the highest-grossing romantic comedies of all time.
- #002
A 9,000-year-old female skeleton excavated in Bulgaria in November 2004 was nicknamed "Julia Roberts" by archaeologists because of her perfect teeth. They said the woman would have had a perfect smile just like the actress.
- #003
By 2000 her films had grossed more than $2 billion in US box office revenue, making her the biggest female movie star of all time. She held that title for several years, until Cameron Diaz took it over a decade later.
- #004
Because Erin Brockovich-Ellis was right-handed and Roberts was not, Roberts had to learn to use her right hand for Erin Brockovich (2000).
- #005
She agreed to shoot the Bali scenes of Eat Pray Love (2010) on location on the condition that the producers allow her family to be there during filming.
- #006
By 2004 she had an estimated fortune of $212 million. Forbes once ranked her 8th among the 20 richest women in the entertainment industry.
- #007
She was the first actor to reach a $20 million salary (for Erin Brockovich (2000)). The first actor to achieve this was Jim Carrey, who was paid the same amount four years earlier for his role in The Cable Guy (1996).
- #008
She was an accomplished rider and did her own riding in Runaway Bride (1999).
- #009
She insured her smile for thirty million dollars.
- #010
Her family was close friends with Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. Walter and Betty Lou Roberts ran the Actors and Writers Workshop in Atlanta, at the time the only integrated drama school there, which the Kings' eldest daughter, Yolanda King, also attended. The Kings paid the hospital bill for Julia's birth.
- #011
She married her boyfriend, cameraman Daniel Moder, in a midnight ceremony at their farmhouse in Taos, New Mexico. Bruce Willis was the only celebrity who attended the ceremony. Julia wore a simple pink cotton halter dress signed by her friend Judith Beylerian (July 4, 2002).
- #012
She was briefly engaged to Kiefer Sutherland. In 1991 she left him just a few days before the wedding they had planned.
- #013
She lent her name to fundraising efforts for research aimed at developing a treatment for Rett Syndrome (a potentially fatal disease that randomly affects girls between the ages of 2 and 6).
- #014
When Bryan Cranston was cast as her husband in Larry Crowne (2011), he got in better shape and whitened his teeth, saying he wanted the pairing of the two to look more convincing.
- #015
She and Denzel Washington have been good friends since they met while co-starring in The Pelican Brief (1993).
- #016
After a difficult pregnancy, she had to deliver her twins Finn Moder and Hazel Moder by emergency cesarean section 8 days before their due date.
- #017
She is good friends with Bruce Willis, Tom Hanks, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Susan Sarandon, Natalie Portman, David Letterman and Dave Matthews.
- #018
Before going to a film set, she lies on her back to have her makeup done; she insists this gives her a relaxed look.
- #019
Julia Roberts was four months pregnant with her son Henry when she finished filming Charlie Wilson's War (2007).
- #020
Julia Roberts was in a relationship with Benjamin Bratt from 1997 to 2001.
- #021
Julia Roberts is a big fan of the actress Katharine Hepburn.
- #022
Initially, the real Erin Brockovich was not pleased that Roberts was chosen to portray her in the 2000 film, because she felt Roberts did not match her own physical appearance and spoke too well. She suggested Goldie Hawn and Roseanne Barr for the role.
- #023
Julia Roberts turned down the lead role in Sleepless in Seattle (1993), which went to Meg Ryan.
- #024
Julia Roberts was engaged to her Steel Magnolias (1989) co-star Dylan McDermott.
- #025
To prepare for her role in Mona Lisa Smile (2003), Julia Roberts took art history classes at New York University.
- #026
Julia Roberts divides her free time between her ranch in Taos, New Mexico, and a home in New York City.
- #027
Thirteen films in Julia Roberts's career have been nominated for at least one Oscar.
- #028
When Julia Roberts is unable to re-record her dialogue for a film, her actress friend Amy Landecker regularly provides her voice for ADR (Automated Dialogue Replacement), standing in for her. Landecker's voice also appears in many of Roberts's film trailers.
- #029
On June 18, 2007, Julia Roberts gave birth to her third child, Henry Daniel Moder, at the age of 39. The child's father is her second husband, Daniel Moder.
- #030
On November 28, 2004, at the age of 37, Julia Roberts gave birth to twins (her first and second children), a son, Finn Moder (also known as Phinnaeus Walter Moder), and a daughter, Hazel Moder (also known as Hazel Patricia Moder). The children's father is her second husband, Daniel Moder.
- #031
Julia Roberts was born to Walter Grady Roberts (1933-1977), a vacuum cleaner salesman, and his wife Betty Lou Bredemus (1934-2015), who was once a church secretary and a real estate agent. Her parents were stage actors and acting coaches.
- #032
In 2006, Julia Roberts earned 5 million dollars for supporting Gianfranco Ferre. She posed for eight print advertisements, the equivalent of one day's work.
- #033
A longtime Dave Matthews Band fan, Julia Roberts appeared in the group's 2005 music video for "Dreamgirl." It was her first performance after giving birth to her twins.
- #034
Before Ocean's Twelve (2004), Julia Roberts had never appeared in a sequel.
- #035
Julia Roberts turned down the female lead in Shakespeare in Love (1998).
- #036
Julia Roberts has so far made only one film with her brother Eric Roberts: Blood Red (1989).
- #037
Julia Roberts won an Oscar for playing Erin Brockovich in Erin Brockovich (2000), making her, as of 2015, one of seventeen actors who won the award on the night of the ceremony for portraying a real person who was still alive. The other sixteen actors and their performances are: Spencer Tracy as Father Edward Flanagan in Boys Town (1938), Gary Cooper as Alvin C. York in Sergeant York (1941), Patty Duke as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker (1962), Jason Robards as Ben Bradlee in All the President's Men (1976), Robert De Niro as Jake La Motta in Raging Bull (1980), Sissy Spacek as Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), Jeremy Irons as Claus Von Bullow in Reversal of Fortune (1990), Susan Sarandon as Sister Helen Prejean in Dead Man Walking (1995), Geoffrey Rush as David Helfgott in Shine (1996), Jim Broadbent as John Bayley in Iris (2001), Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen (2006), Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side (2009), Melissa Leo as Alice Eklund-Ward in The Fighter (2010), Christian Bale as Dickie Eklund in The Fighter (2010), Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady (2011), and Eddie Redmayne as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014).
- #038
Julia Roberts worked with both Hector Elizondo and Richard Gere on two different films: first Pretty Woman (1990) and then again Runaway Bride (1999).
- #039
Julia Roberts has enthusiastically supported UNICEF.
- #040
Julia Roberts dated Matthew Perry.
- #041
Julia Roberts played clarinet in the band. She attended Griffin Middle School and then Campbell High School.
- #042
At the 2002 People's Choice Awards, Julia Roberts admitted she was a big fan of Days of Our Lives (1965) and wanted to sit next to the cast.
- #043
Julia Roberts had a half-sister on her mother's side named Nancy Motes (1976 - 2014).
- #044
Julia Roberts is an honorary Phi Mu sister for her role in Steel Magnolias (1989).
- #045
Canadian singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk wrote the song "Julia" about her after seeing her in a Los Angeles restaurant.
- #046
Julia Roberts's Oscar-winning performance as Erin Brockovich-Ellis ranked 31st on the American Film Institute's 100 Years...100 Heroes list of the greatest screen heroes and villains.
- #047
With that same performance, Julia Roberts is one of 16 actresses to win the Oscar, BAFTA Award, Critics' Choice Award, Golden Globe Award and SAG Award. In chronological order, the others are Renée Zellweger for Cold Mountain (2003), Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005), Helen Mirren for The Queen (2006), Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls (2006), Kate Winslet for The Reader (2008), Mo'Nique for Precious (2009), Natalie Portman for Black Swan (2010), Octavia Spencer for The Help (2011), Anne Hathaway for Les Misérables (2012), Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine (2013), Patricia Arquette for Boyhood (2014), Julianne Moore for Still Alice (2014), Brie Larson for Room (2015), Allison Janney for I, Tonya (2017) and Frances McDormand for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017).
- #048
Julia Roberts lives in Malibu, California, New York City, New York and Taos, New Mexico.
- #049
Julia Roberts gained 10 kilos because of the amount of pasta she had to endure while filming the Italy-based scenes of Eat Pray Love (2010).
- #050
Roberts's production company "Red Om" films is her husband Danny's middle name spelled backwards.
- #051
Julia Roberts has English, German, Swedish, Irish, Scottish and Welsh ancestry.
- #052
Julia Roberts and her Ocean's Eleven (2001) / Ocean's Twelve (2004) co-stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Elliott Gould all appeared as guest stars on the sitcom Friends (1994), though not in the same episodes.
- #053
In May 2002, Julia Roberts testified before Congress to secure more federal funding for Rett Syndrome.
- #054
Julia Roberts's father died when she was 9 years old.
- #055
Six directors have cast Julia Roberts in at least two of their films: Mike Nichols, Steven Soderbergh, Garry Marshall, Robert Altman, Ryan Murphy and Joel Schumacher.
- #056
Julia Roberts made four films with Garry Marshall: Pretty Woman (1990), Runaway Bride (1999), Valentine's Day (2010) and his last film, Mother's Day (2016). The last two were small roles for which Roberts was paid 3 million dollars each.
- #057
Julia Roberts is the younger sister of Lisa Roberts Gillan and Eric Roberts.
- #058
Julia Roberts returned to work to begin filming Duplicity (2009) 9 months after giving birth to her son Henry.
- #059
Julia Roberts was considered for the role of Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin (1997).
- #060
Julia Roberts has worked with four directors who won the Academy Award for Best Director: Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Steven Soderbergh and Mike Nichols.
- #061
Julia Roberts's great-great-grandmother Elin (Eleanor) was Swedish and was born in Värmland, Sweden, in 1884. She died in Minneapolis in 1960, seven years before Julia was born.
- #062
The longest gap in Julia Roberts's Oscar nominations is the 13 years between Erin Brockovich (2000) and August: Osage County (2013).
- #063
Julia Roberts has played the daughter of five friends who won the Best Actress Oscar: Sally Field in Steel Magnolias (1989), Ellen Burstyn in Dying Young (1991), Shirley MacLaine in Valentine's Day (2010), Meryl Streep in August: Osage County (2013) and Sissy Spacek in Homecoming (2018).
- #064
Early in her career, Julia Roberts failed auditions for two soap opera roles. She lost the role of "Linda Warner" on All My Children (1970) to Melissa Leo, and the part of "Hayley Benson" on Santa Barbara (1984) to Stacy Edwards.
- #065
Julia Roberts is a Manchester United FC fan. She has attended matches in Manchester and in 2017 visited the team's training camp in California during its preseason tour of the United States. She has been reported to be a good friend of Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba.
- #066
In June 2004, Julia Roberts announced that she and her husband Daniel Moder were expecting twins. There are twins in her family. They were due to be born in early 2005.
- #067
Julia Roberts has played an art historian twice, in Everyone Says I Love You (1996) and Mona Lisa Smile (2003).
- #068
Julia Roberts's parents, Walter and Betty Lou, divorced when she was 4 years old.
- #069
In 2007, Forbes Magazine estimated Julia Roberts's earnings for the year at 9 million dollars.
- #070
With 12 million dollars, Julia Roberts was the ninth highest-paid actor of 2017.
- #071
Julia Roberts's stepfather is the theater critic Michael Motes.
- #072
Julia Roberts buys her own organic greens from the market near her New York apartment.
- #073
Julia Roberts was nominated for the 2019 Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama for her role as Heidi Bergman in Homecoming (2018), but lost to Sandra Oh for Killing Eve (2018).
- #074
Julia Roberts is the great-aunt of Rhodes Robert Hedlund through her niece Emma Roberts and Emma's former boyfriend Garrett Hedlund.
- #075
Julia Roberts became the 119th actor to win an Oscar; on 25 March 2001, at the 73rd Annual Academy Awards (2001), she won the Best Actress Oscar for Erin Brockovich (2000).
- #076
In 2007, Julia Roberts received the American Cinematheque Award.
- #077
Julia Roberts is the daughter-in-law of Mike Moder.
- #078
Roberts has worked with the only two men who share her surname and have won the Oscar for Best Actor: Dustin Hoffman and Philip Seymour Hoffman. She worked with Dustin Hoffman on Hook (1991) and with Philip Seymour Hoffman on Charlie Wilson's War (2007).
- #079
Julia Roberts was born at 12:16 EST.
- #080
Julia Roberts is the sister-in-law of Tony Gillan and Eliza Roberts.
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