The well-known and accomplished actor Eric Roberts has long been eclipsed by his younger sister, Julia Roberts, who is one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actresses. Although each sibling has achieved personal success, their relationship has not always been stable. Did you know that in interviews, Eric is not authorized to bring up Julia’s name?
The age difference between Julia Roberts, 58, and Eric Roberts, 68, is almost ten years. The same parents raised the siblings, who were born in 1956 and 1965, and they both went on to have prosperous acting careers. Born in 1956, Eric Roberts started his acting career in the 1970s and shot to fame straight away with his role in King of the Gypsies (1978). His most notable roles were in The Expendables and The Dark Knight.
Julia, meanwhile, has won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her outstanding performances in iconic movies like Pretty Woman, Notting Hill, and Erin Brockovich.
They haven’t always had a good connection. His once bright career was ruined by a dreadful cocaine addiction, and it was undoubtedly difficult to be in Julia’s shadow. In 2022, Eric asserted, “Julia and I have always been fine,” adding:
“I remember going on a movie press tour a long time ago. They had a lot of questions about Julia because it was immediately following the publication of Pretty Woman. And I said, “Pardon me. May we discuss me?”
Regarding the notorious car accident, Eric Roberts told lies.
Despite Eric’s repeated positive statements of his relationship with Julia and their other sister, Lisa, it is clear that his substance abuse caused friction between them.
Eric Roberts has a lengthy history of struggling with substance abuse, which nearly lost him his life. There is one particularly notorious instance from 1981 that has been discussed extensively. Eric spent three days “in a coma” following a terrifying car accident. A month later, he was finally discharged from the hospital, but the tragedy’s story was far from over.
According to Eric, his girlfriend’s puppy was in the passenger seat of the doorless Jeep he was driving. He grabbed for the dog as it “leaned out too far,” lost control of the wheel, and crashed into a tree.
But that was not the whole truth. Eric eventually admitted decades later that he had omitted a crucial detail: at the time, he was high on cocaine.
Eric Roberts had a difficult road to recovery. A major relapse was one of the challenges he faced along the way. He was arrested in 1987 for possessing drugs, harassing a woman, and assaulting a police officer.
After Eric, who was intoxicated, approached a woman’s home and knocked on her door after meeting her at a party the year before, he was taken into custody.
It was not the end of the problems. After eight years, Roberts was once more involved in legal issues, this time because of an event involving his wife, Eliza. According to the authorities, Eric shoved Eliza during a violent dispute, causing her head to strike the wall. Eliza called 911. However, it is unclear what exactly happened because Eric and his wife later disputed that there was any physical violence.
Julia Roberts is someone I’m seeing.
It is clear that Eric’s substance abuse caused friction between Julia and their other sister, Lisa, despite his repeated positive statements regarding his relationship with them.
According to Eric, his actions throughout those years of substance abuse—described as “exhaustive to be around”—were a major factor in the siblings’ alienation.
It’s not what I would call a falling out. I had a strong affection for my sisters. adored and treasured them. We had moments of extreme intimacy, and they were priceless to me,” Eric said to Vanity Fair.
I was a tiresome person to be around because I was always whining, placing blame, and lacking appreciation for anything. Julia, like everyone else in my reality, needed a vacation from time to time.
For him, his mother was “dead.”
However, Eric Roberts’ tense relationship with his sisters might have been exacerbated by a traumatic early 1970s childhood. Both of Eric’s parents, Walter Grady Roberts and Betty Lou Bredemus, were writers and actors, but after Betty Lou filed for divorce in 1971, their marriage broke down.
The divorce was finalized at the beginning of 1972. After they separated, his sisters, Julia and Lisa, moved to Smyrna, a tiny town outside of Atlanta, with their mother, while Eric stayed in Atlanta with his father.
The family’s financial situation worsened after the divorce, and everything seemed to fall apart. When her parents divorced, Eric was sixteen and Julia was four.
“My mom was a secretary by profession. My dad was a vacuum cleaner salesman. I lived with my mom. Julia Roberts told the Boston Globe, “We spent the holidays with Dad.”
Runaway Train: Or the Story of My Life So Far, Eric’s memoir, delves into his horrific childhood memories. He acknowledges that his relationships with Julia and Lisa were significantly impacted by his behavior at the time.
“I’m only now beginning to realize the impact it must have had on Julie and Lisa, who were 11 and 13 years old, living with our mom but hearing their big brother… saying in public that their mom is dead,” he recalls a time when his careless remarks had a lasting effect on his sisters.
Today, Eric acknowledges that he brought both of his younger sisters into his awful life of addiction and takes full responsibility for the strain on his family. He later said that the noise had worn them out and that they had finally decided it was not worth the trouble to cope with him.
getting back together with Julia.
Thankfully, the siblings’ reunion was sparked by a surprise hospital invitation in 2004. After giving birth to her twins, Phinnaeus and Hazel, in November of that year, Julia made amends with her family. Henry Daniel, a younger son, was born in 2007 to Julia and her husband, Danny Moder.
Despite the challenges, Eric Roberts seems to love both of his sisters very much. “If it wasn’t for me, there would be no Julia Roberts and Emma Roberts as celebrities, as actresses, and I’m very proud of that,” he added, amusingly claiming to have started his famous sister’s career.
But there was some truth in the joke. As a teenager, Julia would travel to New York to see her brother, and she even got to work on several of his movies, such as Star 1980 and The Pope of Greenwich Village.
When Julia started her career, Eric, who was already a well-known actor, made sure she got to know the right people.
“I went into William Morris when Julia first arrived in New York and asked, ‘Which one of you is going to sign my sister Julia?'” Although Julia acknowledges that her brother had a role in her career, she chose to go her own way and stay away from becoming overly associated with Eric.
I would return from vacation knowing that I had met all of these people, while my buddies would all return from Florida with gorgeous tans. However, Julia clarified, “I didn’t want it to seem like I was just doing it for Eric.”
The daughter of Eric Roberts is an actor.
The Roberts family’s skills are not limited to Eric and Julia. Eric’s daughter Emma Roberts has made a name for herself with her outstanding roles in popular television shows like American Horror Story and movies like We’re the Millers.
His daughter Emma has likewise had to deal with the weight of her father’s heritage, much like his sister Julia has frequently eclipsed Eric. Eric lost touch with Emma at the height of his drug abuse, allowing his ex-wife, Kelly Cunningham, to look after their daughter.
Considering the pain of being away from his daughter when she was only a baby, Eric remarked, “Of course, the most serious consequence of my drug use was losing Emma.”
Julia backed Cunningham at the time because she understood the seriousness of Eric’s addiction. Now that he thinks about it, Eric knows it was the greatest choice for everyone.
Emma’s career has suffered as a result of her father’s problems. “Being in the business has cost me more jobs than it has brought me,” she admitted to Flaunt magazine. Members have opinions, and some of them could not be favorable toward your family members. I’ve probably lost a few jobs as a result of it, but I’ve never won one.
Why is Eric unable to discuss Julia?
The Roberts siblings want to keep their relationship a secret today. The Roberts family seems to have an unwritten rule against Eric speaking to his sister or daughter in public.
In an interview with the Still Here Hollywood podcast in July, Eric disclosed this information. “She does not want to talk about it,” he stated, adding, “I love my sister, but I cannot talk about her.” “I still talk about her even though my daughter told me not to. Although I shouldn’t, I do discuss both of them.
However, the proud parent felt compelled to boast about her accomplishments. Eric disclosed his relationship with Julia during his appearance on the Still Here Hollywood podcast, stating: “I’m really enjoying my daughter’s work right now.” I’m amazed at how intelligent she has become. Eric said on the show, “I can’t see straight because I’m so proud of her.”
Eric has been able to process everything by writing his memoirs. He hopes that this marks the beginning of a more tranquil life, free from addiction and strained relationships, as he recounts in his book.
“I think I’ll be Emma Roberts’ father and Julia’s brother for the rest of my life,” he says. “I want to fulfill my promise and go with dignity and pride. I wrote the book in part for that purpose.
