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Julia Roberts
AskMen.com feature on Julia Roberts that includes pics, pictures, biography, video, related news, vital stats, commentary, and cool facts.

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"I've sort of grown into my cuteness." -Julia Roberts
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Everyone has come to recognize Julia Roberts' million-dollar smile. It's that smile, coupled with talent and remarkable charm, which led Julia Roberts to become one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood and one of the most recognizable faces in the world.
Julie Fiona Roberts was born on October 28, 1967, in Smyrna, Georgia. The daughter of a vacuum salesman and a church secretary, Julia is not the only Roberts sibling to pursue an acting career. Her brother and sister were also aspiring actors, albeit not as famous as Julia -- in fact, 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.
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, to distinguish herself from another actress registered under the same name). In 1990, Oscar acknowledged Julia's work in Steel Magnolias by honoring her with a nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
julia roberts is pretty woman
No role to that date, however, 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.
julia roberts in the pelican brief
At this time, Julia was in the midst of a two-year film hiatus, interrupted by a cameo in Robert Altman's The Player. Her 1993 role in The Pelican Brief, co-starring Denzel Washington, marked Julia's Hollywood comeback. The following years were marked with such hits as 1995's Something to Talk About and 1996's Everyone Says I Love You, along with misses like 1994's Ready To Wear and I Love Trouble, and 1996's Mary Reilly.
On a personal note, Julia Roberts' love life again made headlines, but this time because of her marriage to country star Lyle Lovett. They were married from June 1993 to March 1995, and their union raised many eyebrows.
By 1997, the Julia Roberts everyone loved was back in full form. Her role in the summer hit My Best Friend's Wedding earned her a Best Actress Golden Globe nomination and marked the start of a whole new kind of success for Julia. That same year, she co-starred with Mel Gibson in Conspiracy Theory.
Stepmom also fared well, but it was Julia's only project of 1998. The following year she came back with a vengeance with two summer blockbusters: Notting Hill, in the role of a world-famous movie actress (not much of a character stretch) and Runaway Bride, which re-teamed her with Richard Gere.
erin brockovich leads to oscar
But it was her role as a single mother who takes on a massive corporation in 2000's Erin Brockovich that launched Julia to the next tier. This job bumped Julia into the $20 million club, along with heavy hitters Tom Cruise and Jim Carrey, and earned her the Best Actress Oscar, Golden Globe and SAG Award.
While 2001 brought disappointments in the form of The Mexican and America's Sweethearts, Julia's career has remained, for the most part, steady with successes (including 2001's Ocean's Eleven). This stability comes thanks in part to director/producer Steven Soderbergh, who cast Julia in Erin Brockovich and Ocean's Eleven, among others.
julia roberts in closer and ocean's 12
2004 was a big year for Julia, with two December movie releases -- the drama Closer and the sequel Ocean's Twelve (which is actually the only sequel she has ever appeared in). Julia was unable to attend the premieres or celebrity junkets for these two flicks, as she game birth to twins on November 28, 2004. Although they were due January 2005, Julia had remained on bed rest when she gave birth to son Phinnaeus Walter and daughter Hazel Patricia.
After a three-year romance with actor Benjamin Bratt, Julia began dating cinematographer Daniel Moder. They were married in a surprise midnight ceremony on July 4, 2002.
In 2006, she can add the animated film Ant Bully to her resume -- she is lending her voice to Hova.
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