Eric Roberts, a seasoned actor with an impressive career, has long lived in the shadow of his younger sister, Julia Roberts, one of Hollywood’s most sought-after stars.
While both siblings have achieved fame in their own right, their relationship has faced its share of ups and downs. And did you know that Eric is not allowed to mention Julia’s name in interviews?
A severe cocaine addiction
Eric Roberts, 68, and Julia Roberts, 58, share a nearly decade-long age gap. Born in 1956 and 1965 respectively, the siblings were raised by the same parents and pursued successful acting careers.
Born in 1956, Eric Roberts began his acting career in the 1970s and quickly rose to prominence as a leading man with his role in King of the Gypsies (1978). His most notable roles include appearances in The Dark Knight and The Expendables.
Meanwhile, Julia’s career has been defined by unforgettable performances in iconic films such as Pretty Woman, Notting Hill, and Erin Brockovich, the latter earning her an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Their relationship hasn’t always been smooth sailing. A severe cocaine addiction derailed his once-promising career, and standing in the shadow of Julia was, of course, not easy either.
”Julia and I have always been fine,” Eric said in 2022 but added:
”I think years and years ago, I was doing a press tour for some movie… It was just when Pretty Woman just got released and so they’re asking a bunch of questions about Julia. And I said, “Hey, excuse me. Can we talk about me?”
Eric Roberts lied about infamous car crash
Although Eric has often spoken positively about his relationship with Julia and their other sister, Lisa, it’s clear that his substance abuse caused friction between them.
Eric Roberts’ struggles with substance abuse go way back, and they nearly cost him his life. One particularly infamous incident in 1981 has been talked about quite a bit. That’s when Eric was involved in a terrifying car crash that left him ”in a coma for three days.” A month later, he was finally released from the hospital, but the story behind the crash was far from over.
At the time, Eric said he was driving a doorless Jeep with his girlfriend’s dog in the passenger seat. When the dog “leaned out too far,” he reached to grab it, letting go of the wheel and slammed the car into a tree.
But that wasn’t the whole truth. Decades later, Eric admitted he’d left out a crucial detail: he was actually high on cocaine at the time.
Road to recovery
Eric Roberts’ road to recovery wasn’t easy. He faced setbacks along the way, including a major relapse. In 1987, his life took a darker turn when he was arrested for drug possession, harassing a woman, and assaulting a police officer.
The arrest followed an incident where Eric, under the influence, showed up at a woman’s home—someone he’d met at a party the year before—and started banging on her door.
The troubles didn’t stop there. Eight years later, Roberts found himself in trouble with the law again, this time due to an altercation with his wife, Eliza. During a heated argument, Eliza called 911, and the police reported that Eric had pushed her, causing her to hit her head against the wall. However, both Eric and his wife later denied any physical abuse took place, leaving the details surrounding the incident unclear.
Relationship with Julia Roberts
Although Eric has often spoken positively about his relationship with Julia and their other sister, Lisa, it’s clear that his substance abuse caused friction between them.
Eric admitted his behavior during those years of substance abuse — describing himself as ”exhausting to be around” — was a significant factor in the siblings drifting apart.
”I wouldn’t characterize it as a falling-out. I was crazy about my sisters. Loved them, adored them. They were precious to me, and we had times of great closeness,” Eric told Vanity Fair and continued:
”I was exhausting to be around: complainy, blamey, unable to enjoy enjoyment. Everyone in my world needed a break sometimes, and that must have included Julia.”
His mother was ”dead” to him
But the strained relationship between Eric Roberts and his sisters can be traced back to their difficult childhood in the early 1970s. Eric’s parents, Betty Lou Bredemus and Walter Grady Roberts, worked as actors and playwrights, but their marriage unraveled when Betty Lou filed for divorce in 1971.
The divorce was finalized in early 1972. Following the separation, Eric stayed with his father in Atlanta, while his sisters, Julia and Lisa, moved with their mother to Smyrna, a small community near Atlanta.
After the split, the family’s finances worsened, and everything seemed to fall apart. Julia was 4 years old when their parents divorced, while Eric was 16.
”My mom worked as a secretary. My dad sold vacuum cleaners. I lived with my mom. We saw Dad on holidays,” Julia Roberts told Boston Globe.
Inside his painful upbringing
Eric’s memoir, Runaway Train: Or the Story of My Life So Far, reflects on the painful memories of his upbringing. In it, he acknowledges how his actions during that time deeply affected his relationships with Julia and Lisa.
He recalls one particular moment when his careless words had a lasting impact on his sisters: “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.”
Today, Eric takes full responsibility for the strain on his family, admitting that he pulled both of his younger sisters into his troubled life with addiction. Over time, he acknowledged that they grew exhausted by the chaos and ultimately decided that dealing with him was more trouble than it was worth.
Reunion with Julia
Fortunately, a surprising invitation to the hospital in 2004 became the turning point for the siblings’ reconciliation. The family reconnected when Julia gave birth to her twins, Phinnaeus and Hazel, in November of that year. Julia and her husband, Danny Moder, also later welcomed a younger son, Henry Daniel, in 2007.
Despite the challenges, Eric Roberts seems to hold deep admiration for both his sisters. He also jokingly took credit for launching his superstar sister’s career, saying, ”If it wasn’t for me, there would be no Julia Roberts and no Emma Roberts as celebrities, as actresses, and I’m very proud of that.”
But there was, of course, some truth behind the joke. As a teenager, Julia would visit her brother in New York and even get the chance to be on the sets of some of his films, like The Pope of Greenwich Village and Star 80.
Eric, already an established actor when Julia was just starting out, made sure she met the right people early in her career.
”When Julia first came to New York, I went into William Morris and I said, ‘Which one of you is going to sign my sister Julia?’”
Julia has acknowledged that her brother played a role in her career, although she wanted to carve out her own path and not be too closely associated with Eric.
“After vacation, all my friends would come home from Florida with this great tan, and I would come home with the knowledge that I had met all these people. Still, I didn’t want it to seem as if I was only doing it because of Eric,” Julia said.
Eric Roberts’ daughter is an actress
The Roberts family’s talent doesn’t stop with Julia and Eric. Eric’s daughter, Emma Roberts, has made a name for herself with standout performances in films like We’re the Millers and the hit TV series American Horror Story.
Just as Eric has often found himself overshadowed by his sister Julia, his daughter Emma has also had to navigate the weight of her dad’s legacy. During the height of Eric’s drug addiction, he lost contact with Emma, leaving his ex, Kelly Cunningham, to raise their daughter in his absence.
“Of course, the biggest consequence of my drug use was losing Emma,” Eric reflected on the pain of being separated from his daughter when she was just a baby.
Julia, recognizing the severity of Eric’s addiction, sided with Cunningham during that time. Today, Eric totally understands that it was the best decision for everyone.
However, her father’s struggles have impacted Emmas career. “I’ve lost more jobs than I’ve gained from being in the business,” she shared in an interview with Flaunt magazine. “People have opinions and sometimes maybe they’re not good opinions of people in your family. I’ve never gotten a job because of it; I know I definitely have lost a couple of jobs because of it.”
Why Eric can’t talk about Julia
Nowadays, the Roberts siblings prefer to keep their relationship private. There even seems to be an unspoken rule in the Roberts family when it comes to Eric discussing his daughter or his sister in the media.
Eric shared this fact during a July interview on the Still Here Hollywood podcast. “I love my sister, but I can’t talk about her. She doesn’t want to talk about it,” he confessed. “And also, my daughter told me not to talk about her, but I stumble and do. I’m not supposed to talk about either of them. But I do.”
But the proud father couldn’t help but gush about her accomplishments. During his appearance on the Still Here Hollywood podcast, Eric opened up about his relationship with Julia, stating:
”I’m in love with my daughter’s work these days. I can’t believe how great she’s become. I’m so proud of her I can’t see straight,” Eric said in the podcast.
Writing his memoirs has been a way for Eric to process everything. As he shares in his book, he hopes that this marks the beginning of a calmer life ahead, far removed from addiction and fractured relationships.
“I imagine I will remain as Julia’s brother and Emma Roberts’ dad for the rest of my life,” he writes. “I’d like to make good on that, to move aside proudly and with grace. That’s part of the reason for writing the book.”
