Julia Roberts

Biography

Julie Fiona Roberts was born on October 28, 1967, in Smyrna, Georgia. The daughter of a vacuum salesman and a church secretary, Julia isn't the only Roberts to have pursued an acting career: her brother and sister are also actors, albeit not as famous as Julia -- few even know their names.

julia roberts the actress

As a 17-year-old girl with big dreams, Julia headed to the Big Apple to join her actress sister, Lisa. Starting out as a model in order to make a living, Julia took acting classes on the side in order to perfect her trade. She finally received her big break after her brother, B-movie actor Eric Roberts, convinced a director to cast his little sister in the film Blood Red (1989).Fours years passed between the production of Blood Red and its release, over the span of which Julia found television work on such series as Crime Story and Miami Vice. In 1988, she landed roles in the films Satisfaction and Mystic Pizza. Her role in the latter did not go unnoticed, and audiences and critics alike would soon remember the name Julia Roberts (who actually changed her name from Julie to Julia when she applied for a SAG card in order to distinguish herself from another actress registered under the same name). In 1990, Oscar acknowledged Julia's work in Steel Magnolias, costarring Sally Field and Dolly Parton, by honoring her with a nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
julia roberts in pretty woman

Oscar nomination considered, none of Julia's roles to that date approached the success of 1990's Pretty Woman. Julia's portrayal of prostitute-turned-princess Vivian Ward was so flawless that it seemed as though the role was written for her (it wasn't). This performance garnered her a second Oscar nomination, this time for Best Actress, and cemented Julia as a Hollywood fixture.After Pretty Woman, Julia's success at the box office continued with the thrillers Flatliners (1990) and Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), but then her film career took a turn for the worse. The tearjerker Dying Young (1991) and Steven Spielberg's Peter Pan adaptation Hook (1991) were box-office and critical disasters.While Julia's film career was experiencing highs and subsequent lows, her romantic life was taking a similar bumpy ride. Her wedding to Kiefer Sutherland was canceled just days before the set date, and only a few days later she was romantically linked to actor Jason Patric.