Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. She became well known during the early 1990s after starring in the romantic comedy Pretty Woman opposite Richard Gere, which grossed $463 million worldwide. After receiving Academy Award nominations for Steel Magnolias in 1990 and Pretty Woman in 1991, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2001 for her performance in Erin Brockovich. Her films, which also include romantic comedies such as My Best Friend's Wedding, Mystic Pizza, Notting Hill, Runaway Bride, and crime films such as The Pelican Brief and Ocean's Eleven and Twelve have collectively earned box office receipts of over $2 billion, making her the most successful actress in terms of box office receipts.[2]
Roberts had become one of the highest-paid actresses in the world, topping the Hollywood Reporter's annual "power list" of top-earning female stars from 2002 to 2005, until 2006, when Nicole Kidman won the top spot. Her fee for 1990's Pretty Woman was $300,000; in 2003, she was paid an unprecedented $25 million for her role in Mona Lisa Smile. As of 2007, Roberts's net worth was estimated to be $140 million.[3]
Roberts was the first actress to appear on the cover of Vogue. GQ once erroneously claimed she was the first woman to appear on their cover, but later retracted the statement (Carol Channing appeared on a GQ cover in 1964).[4] She has been named one of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" eleven times, tied with Halle Berry. In 2001 Ladies Home Journal ranked her as the 11th most powerful woman in America, beating out then national security advisor Condoleezza Rice and first lady Laura Bush.[5] Roberts has a production company called Red Om Films, formerly Shoelace Productions ("Moder" spelled backwards, after her husband's last name).
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Early life
* 2 Career
o 2.1 1986–1989
o 2.2 1990–2000
o 2.3 2001–2005
o 2.4 2006–present
+ 2.4.1 Broadway debut
* 3 American Girl Films
* 4 Directors
* 5 Influence
* 6 Personal life
o 6.1 Relationships
o 6.2 Charities
* 7 Filmography
* 8 Awards and nominations
* 9 Further reading
* 10 References
* 11 External links
[edit] Early life
This section of a biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2008) (Find sources: Julia Roberts – news, books, scholar)
Roberts was born in Atlanta, Georgia at Crawford Long Hospital, which is now Emory Hospital Midtown. Her father, Walter Grady Roberts, was a vacuum cleaner salesman, and her Minneapolis, Minnesota-born mother, Betty Lou Motes (née Bredemus), was a one-time church secretary and real estate agent. Her parents, one-time actors and playwrights, met while performing theatrical productions for the armed forces and later co-founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop in Atlanta, Georgia off Juniper berry Street in Midtown; the two divorced in 1971.[6] Her mother later married Michael Motes and had another daughter, named Nancy Motes who was born in 1976. Roberts's father died of cancer when she was ten. Her older brother, Eric Roberts, (from whom she was once estranged but reconciled since 2004) and sister, Lisa Roberts Gillan, are also actors.
While Julia's mother was pregnant with Julia, she and her husband ran an acting school for children in Decatur, Georgia. The children of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King attended the school. As a thank-you for their service, Mrs. King paid the hospital bill when Mrs. Roberts gave birth to Julia.
Roberts moved to Smyrna, Georgia (a suburb of Atlanta) in 1972, where she attended Fitzhugh Lee Elementary School, Griffin Middle School and Campbell High School.[7] She played clarinet in the band. Roberts wanted to be a veterinarian as a child, but soon after graduating from Smyrna's Campbell High School,[8] she headed to New York to join her sister Lisa Roberts Gillan and pursue a career in acting. Once there, she signed with the Click modeling agency and enrolled in acting classes. She reverted to her original name "Julia Roberts" when she discovered that a "Julie Roberts" was already registered with the Screen Actors Guild. Her niece, Emma Roberts, whom Julia used to take to movie sets when she was a young girl, has joined her father and aunts in the acting business.
[edit] Career
[edit] 1986–1989
Roberts made her film debut playing a supporting role opposite her brother, Eric, in Blood Red (she has just two words of dialogue), which, although filmed in 1987 was not released until 1989 (She was just about to have her 19th birthday during the filming). Her first television appearance was as a juvenile rape victim in the initial season of the series Crime Story with Dennis Farina, in the episode titled "The Survivor", broadcast on February 13, 1987. She also once appeared on Sesame Street opposite the character Elmo, demonstrating her ability to change emotions. Roberts first caught the attention of moviegoers with her performance in the independent film Mystic Pizza in 1988; that same year, she had a role in the fourth season finale of Miami Vice. The following year, she was featured in Steel Magnolias as a young bride battling diabetes and garnered her first Oscar nomination (as Best Supporting Actress) for her performance.
[edit] 1990–2000
Roberts became known to worldwide audiences when she co-starred with Richard Gere in the Cinderella/Pygmalionesque story Pretty Woman in 1990. Roberts won the role after the first two choices for the part, Molly Ringwald and Meg Ryan both turned it down. 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, Patrick Bergin, and begins a new life in Iowa. She played Tinkerbell in Steven Spielberg's Hook in 1991, and also played a Nurse in the 1991 film Dying Young; which was followed by a two-year hiatus, during which she made no films 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?"
In 1993, she co-starred with Denzel Washington in the successful The Pelican Brief, based on the John Grisham novel. She also starred alongside Liam Neeson in the 1996 film Michael Collins. In 1995 she appeared in season 2 of Friends (ep.13 "the one after the superbowl"). Over 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, such as Stephen Frears' Mary Reilly (1996) for which she earned a Razzie Worst Actress nomination. She starred with Hugh Grant in the 1999 film Notting Hill. That same year, she also starred in Runaway Bride, the second film with the Julia Roberts-Richard Gere duo. Roberts was a guest star on the Law & Order television series in an episode broadcast on May 5, 1999 entitled "Empire", with series regular Benjamin Bratt (at that time her boyfriend). Also in 1999, she starred in the critically panned film Stepmom alongside Susan Sarandon.
[edit] 2001–2005
Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Andy García, Roberts, cast of Ocean's Eleven along with director Steven Soderbergh in December 2001
In 2001, Roberts received the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Erin Brockovich, who helped wage a successful lawsuit against energy giant Pacific Gas & Electric. While presenting the Best Actor Award to Denzel Washington the following year, she made a gaffe, saying she was glad that Tom Conti wasn't there. She meant the conductor Bill Conti, who had tried to hasten the conclusion of her Oscar speech the previous year, but instead named the Scottish actor.[9] Roberts would team up with Erin Brockovich director Steven Soderbergh for three more films: Ocean's Eleven (2001), Full Frontal (2002), and Ocean's Twelve (2004). Later in 2001 she starred in the road gangster comedy The Mexican giving her a chance to work with long time friend Brad Pitt. In 2005, she was featured in the music video for the hit single "Dreamgirl" by the Dave Matthews Band.
[edit] 2006–present
Roberts's two films released in 2006, The Ant Bully and Charlotte's Web, were both animated features for which she provided only voice acting. Her next film was Charlie Wilson's War, with Tom Hanks and Philip Seymour Hoffman, directed by Mike Nichols and based on the book by former CBS journalist George Crile; it was released on December 21, 2007. Fireflies in the Garden, also starring Ryan Reynolds and Willem Dafoe is currently in post-production, with release set for 2009. It has also been announced that Roberts will star in The Friday Night Knitting Club, based on the novel of the same name by Kate Jacobs. Her niece, Emma Roberts, is said to be considered for the role of her daughter.
[edit] Broadway debut
Roberts made her Broadway debut on April 19, 2006 as Nan in a revival of Richard Greenberg's 1997 play Three Days of Rain opposite Bradley Cooper and Paul Rudd. Although the play grossed nearly US$1 million dollars in ticket sales during its first week and was a commercial success throughout its limited run, most critics heavily criticized Roberts' performance. The New York Times' critic Ben Brantly, a self-proclaimed 'Juliaholic,' described her as being fraught with "self-consciousness (especially in the first act) [and] only glancingly acquainted with the two characters she plays." Brantley also criticized the production of “Greenberg's slender, elegant play,” writing that “it's almost impossible to discern its artistic virtues from this wooden and splintered interpretation, directed by Joe Mantello.” Three Days of Rain received two Tony Award nominations in stage design categories, but took home neither prize. Roberts did, however, receive a Broadway.com audience award (a minor theatrical prize) for her performance.[citation needed]
[edit] American Girl Films
Julia Roberts has brought to life some of the books from American Girl as movies and serves as Executive Producer, along with her sister Lisa. The company's product lines and services are focused on pre-teen-girl characters from various periods of American history, who are embodied as dolls and featured in narratives including books and movies. Its flagship line is a collection of historical 18-inch dolls that have books and accessories. Currently Julia Roberts has produced four movies.[10]
[edit] Directors
Directors Robert Altman, Mike Nichols, Joel Schumacher, Steven Soderbergh, and Garry Marshall have repeatedly cast Roberts in their films. But Steven Spielberg, after directing her in Hook (1991) for which she earned a Razzie Worst Supporting Actress nomination, never worked with her again. In a 1993 interview with Barbara Walters, Roberts said that she was confused by Spielberg's recollection of working with her, as she only has positive memories of working on his film.[11] In 1993, The New York Times[12]wrote that Herbert Ross, the director of Steel Magnolias, criticized that Julia's acting was one-dimensional, despite the fact that she received her first Academy Award nomination for it. Although, Roberts eventually called for a truce, the two never worked together again.
[edit] Influence
As of February 2007, Roberts's films have grossed $2,204,631,930 at the American box office making her the biggest female movie star in history and achieving this feat with only 31 films to her name.[13] She was also placed at the pinnacle of the Ulmer Scale, a comprehensive guide to the global star power of actors and directors in independent and studio films created by James Ulmer, ahead of such other luminaries as Tom Cruise and Tom Hanks. This was partly owing to her ability to attract filmgoers solely on the basis of her name's appearance above the title and without the support of a male co-star, something few other actresses have been able to do.
[edit] Personal life
[edit] Relationships
Roberts's personal life has often been in the spotlight. She has had widely reported romantic relationships with numerous famous men, including Liam Neeson, Dylan McDermott, Kiefer Sutherland, David Warmee, Lyle Lovett, Matthew Perry, and Benjamin Bratt. She was briefly engaged to McDermott, her Steel Magnolias co-star. She met Sutherland in 1990, when he was her co-star in Flatliners; he left his wife and children to move in with Roberts. In August 1990, Roberts and Sutherland announced their engagement, with an elaborate studio-planned wedding scheduled for June 14, 1991. Roberts broke the engagement three days before the wedding when she discovered Sutherland had been meeting with a stripper named Amanda Rice. Roberts subsequently went to Ireland with Jason Patric, a friend of Sutherland's. On June 27, 1993, she married country singer
Lyle Lovett; the couple had met only three weeks earlier. The wedding took place on 72-hours' notice and was held in Marion, Indiana, near where Lovett was appearing on tour with his band. Less than two years later, in March 1995, the couple separated, and subsequently divorced.
In 1998, Roberts began dating Law & Order star Benjamin Bratt, and he was her escort for the March 25, 2001 Academy Awards ceremony at which she won her Oscar. Three months later, in June 2001, Roberts and Bratt announced that they were no longer a couple. "It's come to a kind and tenderhearted end," she said of their relationship.[14]
Roberts met her current husband, cameraman Daniel Moder, on the set of her movie The Mexican in 2000 and they began an affair. Though at the time, Moder was married to Vera Steimberg Moder, he filed for divorce a little over a year later, and after it was finalized, he and Roberts wed on Fourth of July 2002, at her ranch in Taos, New Mexico.[15]On November 28, 2004, they became the parents of fraternal twins, daughter Hazel Patricia and son Phinnaeus "Finn" Walter. Their third child, son Henry Daniel Moder, was born on June 18, 2007, in Los Angeles.[16][17]
[edit] Charities
Roberts has given her time and resources to UNICEF as well as to other charitable organizations. In Spring 1995, Roberts, an enthusiastic supporter of UNICEF, asked if she could meet some of the relief agency's neediest recipients. On May 10, she arrived in Port-au-Prince, as she said, "to educate myself". The poverty she found was overwhelming. "My heart is just bursting", she said. UNICEF officials hoped that her six-day visit would trigger an outburst of giving: $10 million in aid was sought at the time[citation needed].
In 2000, Roberts narrated Silent Angels, a documentary about Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder, which was shot in Los Angeles, Baltimore and New York. The documentary was designed to help raise public awareness about the disease. In July 2006, Earth Biofuels announced Roberts as a spokeswoman for the company and as chair of the company's newly formed Advisory Board promoting the use of renewable fuels.
[edit] Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1987 Firehouse Babs
1988 Blood Red Maria Collogero
Miami Vice Polly Wheeler TV (season 4 episode 22: Mirror Image)
Mystic Pizza Daisy Arujo Independent Spirit Award Nomination: Best Lead Actress
Baja Oklahoma Candy Hutchins TV
Satisfaction Daryle Also known as Girls of Summer
1989 Steel Magnolias Shelby Eatenton Latcherie Academy Award nomination: Best Supporting Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Supporting Actress
1990 Flatliners Rachel Mannus
Pretty Woman Vivian Ward Academy Award nomination: Best Actress
BAFTA nomination: Best Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
1991 Hook Tinkerbell Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actress
Dying Young Hilary O'Neil
Sleeping with the Enemy Sara Waters/Laura Burney
1992 The Player Cameo
1993 The Pelican Brief Darby Shaw
1994 Prêt-à-Porter Anne Eisenhower Also known as Ready to Wear
I Love Trouble Sabrina Peterson
1995 Something to Talk About Grace King Bichon
1996 Everyone Says I Love You Von Sidell
Michael Collins Kitty Kiernan
Mary Reilly Mary Reilly Razzie Award Worst Actress
1997 Conspiracy Theory Alice Sutton
My Best Friend's Wedding Julianne Potter Golden Globe nomination: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
1998 Stepmom Isabel Kelly
1999 Runaway Bride Maggie Carpenter
Notting Hill Anna Scott Golden Globe nomination: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
2000 Erin Brockovich Erin Brockovich Academy Award win: Best Actress
BAFTA win: Best Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Drama Actress
2001 Ocean's Eleven Tess Ocean
America's Sweethearts Kathleen "Kiki" Harrison
The Mexican Samantha Barzel
2002 Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Patricia Watson
Grand Champion Jolene
Full Frontal Catherine/Francesca
2003 Mona Lisa Smile Katherine Ann Watson
2004 Ocean's Twelve Tess Ocean
Closer Anna Cameron
2006 Charlotte's Web Charlotte the Spider (voice)
Beslan: Three Days In September Narrator
The Ant Bully Hova (voice)
2007 Charlie Wilson's War Joanne Herring Golden Globe nomination - Best Supporting Actress
2008 Fireflies in the Garden Lisa Waechter
2009 Duplicity Claire Stenwick
2010 The Friday Night Knitting Club Georgia Walker forthcoming film
[edit] Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Film Result
1989 Academy Award Best Supporting Actress Steel Magnolias Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Won
1990 Academy Award Best Actress Pretty Woman Nominated
BAFTA Award Best Actress Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Won
Saturn Award Best Supporting Actress Flatliners Nominated
1991 Saturn Award Best Actress Sleeping with the Enemy Nominated
Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actress Hook Nominated
1994 NBR Award Best Cast Prêt-à-Porter Won
1996 Razzie Award Worst Actress Mary Reilly Nominated
1997 Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy My Best Friend's Wedding Nominated
1999 Emmy Award Outstanding Guest Actress - Drama Series Law & Order Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Notting Hill Nominated
2000 Academy Award Best Actress Erin Brockovich Won
BAFTA Award Best Actress Won
Empire Award Best Actress Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Won
NBR Award Best Actress Won
SAG Award Outstanding Actress - Motion Picture Won
2004 NBR Award Best Cast Closer Won
2007 Golden Globe Award Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Charlie Wilson's War Nominated
Roberts had become one of the highest-paid actresses in the world, topping the Hollywood Reporter's annual "power list" of top-earning female stars from 2002 to 2005, until 2006, when Nicole Kidman won the top spot. Her fee for 1990's Pretty Woman was $300,000; in 2003, she was paid an unprecedented $25 million for her role in Mona Lisa Smile. As of 2007, Roberts's net worth was estimated to be $140 million.[3]
Roberts was the first actress to appear on the cover of Vogue. GQ once erroneously claimed she was the first woman to appear on their cover, but later retracted the statement (Carol Channing appeared on a GQ cover in 1964).[4] She has been named one of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" eleven times, tied with Halle Berry. In 2001 Ladies Home Journal ranked her as the 11th most powerful woman in America, beating out then national security advisor Condoleezza Rice and first lady Laura Bush.[5] Roberts has a production company called Red Om Films, formerly Shoelace Productions ("Moder" spelled backwards, after her husband's last name).
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Early life
* 2 Career
o 2.1 1986–1989
o 2.2 1990–2000
o 2.3 2001–2005
o 2.4 2006–present
+ 2.4.1 Broadway debut
* 3 American Girl Films
* 4 Directors
* 5 Influence
* 6 Personal life
o 6.1 Relationships
o 6.2 Charities
* 7 Filmography
* 8 Awards and nominations
* 9 Further reading
* 10 References
* 11 External links
[edit] Early life
This section of a biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2008) (Find sources: Julia Roberts – news, books, scholar)
Roberts was born in Atlanta, Georgia at Crawford Long Hospital, which is now Emory Hospital Midtown. Her father, Walter Grady Roberts, was a vacuum cleaner salesman, and her Minneapolis, Minnesota-born mother, Betty Lou Motes (née Bredemus), was a one-time church secretary and real estate agent. Her parents, one-time actors and playwrights, met while performing theatrical productions for the armed forces and later co-founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop in Atlanta, Georgia off Juniper berry Street in Midtown; the two divorced in 1971.[6] Her mother later married Michael Motes and had another daughter, named Nancy Motes who was born in 1976. Roberts's father died of cancer when she was ten. Her older brother, Eric Roberts, (from whom she was once estranged but reconciled since 2004) and sister, Lisa Roberts Gillan, are also actors.
While Julia's mother was pregnant with Julia, she and her husband ran an acting school for children in Decatur, Georgia. The children of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King attended the school. As a thank-you for their service, Mrs. King paid the hospital bill when Mrs. Roberts gave birth to Julia.
Roberts moved to Smyrna, Georgia (a suburb of Atlanta) in 1972, where she attended Fitzhugh Lee Elementary School, Griffin Middle School and Campbell High School.[7] She played clarinet in the band. Roberts wanted to be a veterinarian as a child, but soon after graduating from Smyrna's Campbell High School,[8] she headed to New York to join her sister Lisa Roberts Gillan and pursue a career in acting. Once there, she signed with the Click modeling agency and enrolled in acting classes. She reverted to her original name "Julia Roberts" when she discovered that a "Julie Roberts" was already registered with the Screen Actors Guild. Her niece, Emma Roberts, whom Julia used to take to movie sets when she was a young girl, has joined her father and aunts in the acting business.
[edit] Career
[edit] 1986–1989
Roberts made her film debut playing a supporting role opposite her brother, Eric, in Blood Red (she has just two words of dialogue), which, although filmed in 1987 was not released until 1989 (She was just about to have her 19th birthday during the filming). Her first television appearance was as a juvenile rape victim in the initial season of the series Crime Story with Dennis Farina, in the episode titled "The Survivor", broadcast on February 13, 1987. She also once appeared on Sesame Street opposite the character Elmo, demonstrating her ability to change emotions. Roberts first caught the attention of moviegoers with her performance in the independent film Mystic Pizza in 1988; that same year, she had a role in the fourth season finale of Miami Vice. The following year, she was featured in Steel Magnolias as a young bride battling diabetes and garnered her first Oscar nomination (as Best Supporting Actress) for her performance.
[edit] 1990–2000
Roberts became known to worldwide audiences when she co-starred with Richard Gere in the Cinderella/Pygmalionesque story Pretty Woman in 1990. Roberts won the role after the first two choices for the part, Molly Ringwald and Meg Ryan both turned it down. 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, Patrick Bergin, and begins a new life in Iowa. She played Tinkerbell in Steven Spielberg's Hook in 1991, and also played a Nurse in the 1991 film Dying Young; which was followed by a two-year hiatus, during which she made no films 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?"
In 1993, she co-starred with Denzel Washington in the successful The Pelican Brief, based on the John Grisham novel. She also starred alongside Liam Neeson in the 1996 film Michael Collins. In 1995 she appeared in season 2 of Friends (ep.13 "the one after the superbowl"). Over 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, such as Stephen Frears' Mary Reilly (1996) for which she earned a Razzie Worst Actress nomination. She starred with Hugh Grant in the 1999 film Notting Hill. That same year, she also starred in Runaway Bride, the second film with the Julia Roberts-Richard Gere duo. Roberts was a guest star on the Law & Order television series in an episode broadcast on May 5, 1999 entitled "Empire", with series regular Benjamin Bratt (at that time her boyfriend). Also in 1999, she starred in the critically panned film Stepmom alongside Susan Sarandon.
[edit] 2001–2005
Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Andy García, Roberts, cast of Ocean's Eleven along with director Steven Soderbergh in December 2001
In 2001, Roberts received the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Erin Brockovich, who helped wage a successful lawsuit against energy giant Pacific Gas & Electric. While presenting the Best Actor Award to Denzel Washington the following year, she made a gaffe, saying she was glad that Tom Conti wasn't there. She meant the conductor Bill Conti, who had tried to hasten the conclusion of her Oscar speech the previous year, but instead named the Scottish actor.[9] Roberts would team up with Erin Brockovich director Steven Soderbergh for three more films: Ocean's Eleven (2001), Full Frontal (2002), and Ocean's Twelve (2004). Later in 2001 she starred in the road gangster comedy The Mexican giving her a chance to work with long time friend Brad Pitt. In 2005, she was featured in the music video for the hit single "Dreamgirl" by the Dave Matthews Band.
[edit] 2006–present
Roberts's two films released in 2006, The Ant Bully and Charlotte's Web, were both animated features for which she provided only voice acting. Her next film was Charlie Wilson's War, with Tom Hanks and Philip Seymour Hoffman, directed by Mike Nichols and based on the book by former CBS journalist George Crile; it was released on December 21, 2007. Fireflies in the Garden, also starring Ryan Reynolds and Willem Dafoe is currently in post-production, with release set for 2009. It has also been announced that Roberts will star in The Friday Night Knitting Club, based on the novel of the same name by Kate Jacobs. Her niece, Emma Roberts, is said to be considered for the role of her daughter.
[edit] Broadway debut
Roberts made her Broadway debut on April 19, 2006 as Nan in a revival of Richard Greenberg's 1997 play Three Days of Rain opposite Bradley Cooper and Paul Rudd. Although the play grossed nearly US$1 million dollars in ticket sales during its first week and was a commercial success throughout its limited run, most critics heavily criticized Roberts' performance. The New York Times' critic Ben Brantly, a self-proclaimed 'Juliaholic,' described her as being fraught with "self-consciousness (especially in the first act) [and] only glancingly acquainted with the two characters she plays." Brantley also criticized the production of “Greenberg's slender, elegant play,” writing that “it's almost impossible to discern its artistic virtues from this wooden and splintered interpretation, directed by Joe Mantello.” Three Days of Rain received two Tony Award nominations in stage design categories, but took home neither prize. Roberts did, however, receive a Broadway.com audience award (a minor theatrical prize) for her performance.[citation needed]
[edit] American Girl Films
Julia Roberts has brought to life some of the books from American Girl as movies and serves as Executive Producer, along with her sister Lisa. The company's product lines and services are focused on pre-teen-girl characters from various periods of American history, who are embodied as dolls and featured in narratives including books and movies. Its flagship line is a collection of historical 18-inch dolls that have books and accessories. Currently Julia Roberts has produced four movies.[10]
[edit] Directors
Directors Robert Altman, Mike Nichols, Joel Schumacher, Steven Soderbergh, and Garry Marshall have repeatedly cast Roberts in their films. But Steven Spielberg, after directing her in Hook (1991) for which she earned a Razzie Worst Supporting Actress nomination, never worked with her again. In a 1993 interview with Barbara Walters, Roberts said that she was confused by Spielberg's recollection of working with her, as she only has positive memories of working on his film.[11] In 1993, The New York Times[12]wrote that Herbert Ross, the director of Steel Magnolias, criticized that Julia's acting was one-dimensional, despite the fact that she received her first Academy Award nomination for it. Although, Roberts eventually called for a truce, the two never worked together again.
[edit] Influence
As of February 2007, Roberts's films have grossed $2,204,631,930 at the American box office making her the biggest female movie star in history and achieving this feat with only 31 films to her name.[13] She was also placed at the pinnacle of the Ulmer Scale, a comprehensive guide to the global star power of actors and directors in independent and studio films created by James Ulmer, ahead of such other luminaries as Tom Cruise and Tom Hanks. This was partly owing to her ability to attract filmgoers solely on the basis of her name's appearance above the title and without the support of a male co-star, something few other actresses have been able to do.
[edit] Personal life
[edit] Relationships
Roberts's personal life has often been in the spotlight. She has had widely reported romantic relationships with numerous famous men, including Liam Neeson, Dylan McDermott, Kiefer Sutherland, David Warmee, Lyle Lovett, Matthew Perry, and Benjamin Bratt. She was briefly engaged to McDermott, her Steel Magnolias co-star. She met Sutherland in 1990, when he was her co-star in Flatliners; he left his wife and children to move in with Roberts. In August 1990, Roberts and Sutherland announced their engagement, with an elaborate studio-planned wedding scheduled for June 14, 1991. Roberts broke the engagement three days before the wedding when she discovered Sutherland had been meeting with a stripper named Amanda Rice. Roberts subsequently went to Ireland with Jason Patric, a friend of Sutherland's. On June 27, 1993, she married country singer
In 1998, Roberts began dating Law & Order star Benjamin Bratt, and he was her escort for the March 25, 2001 Academy Awards ceremony at which she won her Oscar. Three months later, in June 2001, Roberts and Bratt announced that they were no longer a couple. "It's come to a kind and tenderhearted end," she said of their relationship.[14]
Roberts met her current husband, cameraman Daniel Moder, on the set of her movie The Mexican in 2000 and they began an affair. Though at the time, Moder was married to Vera Steimberg Moder, he filed for divorce a little over a year later, and after it was finalized, he and Roberts wed on Fourth of July 2002, at her ranch in Taos, New Mexico.[15]On November 28, 2004, they became the parents of fraternal twins, daughter Hazel Patricia and son Phinnaeus "Finn" Walter. Their third child, son Henry Daniel Moder, was born on June 18, 2007, in Los Angeles.[16][17]
[edit] Charities
Roberts has given her time and resources to UNICEF as well as to other charitable organizations. In Spring 1995, Roberts, an enthusiastic supporter of UNICEF, asked if she could meet some of the relief agency's neediest recipients. On May 10, she arrived in Port-au-Prince, as she said, "to educate myself". The poverty she found was overwhelming. "My heart is just bursting", she said. UNICEF officials hoped that her six-day visit would trigger an outburst of giving: $10 million in aid was sought at the time[citation needed].
In 2000, Roberts narrated Silent Angels, a documentary about Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder, which was shot in Los Angeles, Baltimore and New York. The documentary was designed to help raise public awareness about the disease. In July 2006, Earth Biofuels announced Roberts as a spokeswoman for the company and as chair of the company's newly formed Advisory Board promoting the use of renewable fuels.
[edit] Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1987 Firehouse Babs
1988 Blood Red Maria Collogero
Miami Vice Polly Wheeler TV (season 4 episode 22: Mirror Image)
Mystic Pizza Daisy Arujo Independent Spirit Award Nomination: Best Lead Actress
Baja Oklahoma Candy Hutchins TV
Satisfaction Daryle Also known as Girls of Summer
1989 Steel Magnolias Shelby Eatenton Latcherie Academy Award nomination: Best Supporting Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Supporting Actress
1990 Flatliners Rachel Mannus
Pretty Woman Vivian Ward Academy Award nomination: Best Actress
BAFTA nomination: Best Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
1991 Hook Tinkerbell Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actress
Dying Young Hilary O'Neil
Sleeping with the Enemy Sara Waters/Laura Burney
1992 The Player Cameo
1993 The Pelican Brief Darby Shaw
1994 Prêt-à-Porter Anne Eisenhower Also known as Ready to Wear
I Love Trouble Sabrina Peterson
1995 Something to Talk About Grace King Bichon
1996 Everyone Says I Love You Von Sidell
Michael Collins Kitty Kiernan
Mary Reilly Mary Reilly Razzie Award Worst Actress
1997 Conspiracy Theory Alice Sutton
My Best Friend's Wedding Julianne Potter Golden Globe nomination: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
1998 Stepmom Isabel Kelly
1999 Runaway Bride Maggie Carpenter
Notting Hill Anna Scott Golden Globe nomination: Best Musical/Comedy Actress
2000 Erin Brockovich Erin Brockovich Academy Award win: Best Actress
BAFTA win: Best Actress
Golden Globe win: Best Drama Actress
2001 Ocean's Eleven Tess Ocean
America's Sweethearts Kathleen "Kiki" Harrison
The Mexican Samantha Barzel
2002 Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Patricia Watson
Grand Champion Jolene
Full Frontal Catherine/Francesca
2003 Mona Lisa Smile Katherine Ann Watson
2004 Ocean's Twelve Tess Ocean
Closer Anna Cameron
2006 Charlotte's Web Charlotte the Spider (voice)
Beslan: Three Days In September Narrator
The Ant Bully Hova (voice)
2007 Charlie Wilson's War Joanne Herring Golden Globe nomination - Best Supporting Actress
2008 Fireflies in the Garden Lisa Waechter
2009 Duplicity Claire Stenwick
2010 The Friday Night Knitting Club Georgia Walker forthcoming film
[edit] Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Film Result
1989 Academy Award Best Supporting Actress Steel Magnolias Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Won
1990 Academy Award Best Actress Pretty Woman Nominated
BAFTA Award Best Actress Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Won
Saturn Award Best Supporting Actress Flatliners Nominated
1991 Saturn Award Best Actress Sleeping with the Enemy Nominated
Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actress Hook Nominated
1994 NBR Award Best Cast Prêt-à-Porter Won
1996 Razzie Award Worst Actress Mary Reilly Nominated
1997 Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy My Best Friend's Wedding Nominated
1999 Emmy Award Outstanding Guest Actress - Drama Series Law & Order Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Notting Hill Nominated
2000 Academy Award Best Actress Erin Brockovich Won
BAFTA Award Best Actress Won
Empire Award Best Actress Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Won
NBR Award Best Actress Won
SAG Award Outstanding Actress - Motion Picture Won
2004 NBR Award Best Cast Closer Won
2007 Golden Globe Award Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Charlie Wilson's War Nominated
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