Julia Roberts (born Julie Fiona Roberts on October 28, 1967, in Smyrna, Georgia) is an American actress. As of 2005, Roberts is reportedly the highest-paid female actor in Hollywood.

Family background

Roberts' father, Walter, was a vacuum cleaner salesman, actor and writer. Her mother, Betty, was a church secretary and actress. Her parents divorced when she was five, and her mother remarried. Her father died of cancer when Roberts was nine.

Roberts wanted to be a veterinarian as a child, but soon after graduating from Smyrna's Campbell High School , she headed to New York to join her sister and pursue a career in acting. Once there she signed with Clicks modeling agency and enrolled in acting classes.

Films

Julie Roberts made her film debut playing a supporting role opposite her brother, Eric, in Blood Red , which although completed in 1986 was not released until 1989. Rail-thin, long-legged and sporting a thick, curly mane of auburn hair, she looked more coltish than elegant in the movie. Here, her great hazel eyes and impossibly large mouth are capable of much expression, sometimes radiance, when she cuts loose with a broad grin and a braying laugh.

Roberts first caught the attention of moviegoers with her performance in the film Mystic Pizza in 1988. The following year she was featured in Steel Magnolias as a young bride battling diabetes, garnering her first Oscar nomination (as Best Supporting Actress) for her performance. She catapulted to worldwide fame when she co-starred with Richard Gere in the Cinderella story Pretty Woman in 1990. The role also earned her a second Oscar nod, this time as Best Actress. Her next box office success was the thriller Sleeping with the Enemy, playing a battered wife who escapes her demented husband and starts a new life in Iowa. She played Tinkerbelle in Steven Spielberg's Hook in 1991, which was followed by a two-year period of no acting roles other than a cameo appearance in Robert Altman's The Player (1992). In early 1993, she was the subject of a People magazine cover story asking, "What Happened to Julia Roberts?"

Later that year, she co-starred with Denzel Washington in the successful The Pelican Brief, based on the John Grisham novel. For the next few years, she starred in a series of films that were critical and commercial failures, primarily because she was cast in roles that strayed too far from her film persona. She broke her losing streak with the hugely popular comedy My Best Friend's Wedding (1997), and eventually earned a reputation as an actress who could guarantee a huge box office draw. In 2001, she won critical acclaim and finally nabbed a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Erin Brockovich, who helped wage a successful lawsuit against energy giant Pacific Gas & Electric.

Personal life

Roberts' personal life has often been in the spotlight, a fact that served as the basis of her (1999) film Notting Hill, a romantic comedy about a famous actress falling for an ordinary guy played by Hugh Grant. Her character, Anna Scott, was said to be closely modeled on Roberts herself. (When asked in one scene how much she was paid to appear in a movie, Scott replies "fifteen million dollars"—precisely the amount Roberts had received to appear in the movie.)

Roberts was engaged to actor Kiefer Sutherland in 1991 but ended the relationship just days before the wedding. She later eloped with country and western singer Lyle Lovett shortly after meeting him; they divorced in 1995.

Roberts met her husband, cameraman Danny Moder , on the set of her movie The Mexican in 2000. The couple were married July 4, 2002, in Taos, New Mexico. They became the parents of twins Hazel Patricia and Phinnaeus Walter on November 28, 2004.

For years, Roberts has been estranged from her brother, actor Eric Roberts.

Other professional activities

Roberts has a production company called Shoelace Productions and splits her time between her homes in New York, the Hollywood Hills, and a 50-acre retreat in Taos, New Mexico. She has given of her time and resources to UNICEF as well as to other charitable organizations. She has made trips to Haiti, India, and other countries promoting peace, goodwill, and help for others in need. She has been named five times as one of the "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" by People magazine.

Filmography

• Ocean's Twelve (2004)
• Closer (2004)
• Mona Lisa Smile (2003)
• Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
• Full Frontal (2002)
• Ocean's Eleven (2001)
• America's Sweethearts (2001)
• The Mexican (2001)
• Erin Brockovich (2000)
• Runaway Bride (1999)
• Notting Hill (1999)
• Stepmom (1998)
• Conspiracy Theory (1997)
• My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
• Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
• Michael Collins (1996)
• Mary Reilly (1996)
• Something to Talk About (1995)
• Prêt-à-Porter (aka Ready to Wear) (1994)
• I Love Trouble (1994)
• The Pelican Brief (1993)
• The Player (1992)
• Hook (1991)
• Dying Young (1991)
• Sleeping with the Enemy (1991)
• Flatliners (1990)
• Pretty Woman (1990)
• Steel Magnolias (1989)
• Blood Red (1988)
• Mystic Pizza (1988)
• Satisfaction (aka Girls of Summer) (1988)
• Baja Oklahoma (Made for TV) (1988)
• Firehouse (1987)

Awards won

Best Supporting Actress

• 1990: Golden Globe for Steel Magnolias

Best Actress

• 1991: Golden Globe for Pretty Woman
• 2000: Academy Award for Erin Brockovich
• 2000: British Academy Awards for Erin Brockovich
• 2000: Golden Globe for Erin Brockovich (2000)
• 2000: National Board of Review for Erin Brockovich
• 2000: Screen Actors Guild for Erin Brockovich

Awards nominated

Best Supporting Actress

• 1989: Academy Award for Steel Magnolias

Best Actress

• 1990: Academy Award for Pretty Woman
• 1990: British Academy Awards for Pretty Woman
• 1997: Golden Globe for My Best Friend's Wedding
• 1999: Golden Globe for Notting Hill

External links

• http://juliarobertsonline.com – Julia Roberts Community