“If I’d thought something was good enough, I would have done it.”
Julia Roberts is one of the biggest movie stars in the world — and she’s also known for starring in some seriously classic romantic comedies.
Buena Vista Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
Her upcoming movie with George Clooney, Ticket to Paradise, will mark her first romantic comedy in 20 years — specifically, since 2001’s America’s Sweethearts.
Columbia Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
In a new interview with the New York Times, Julia explained why she stepped away from the genre for two decades.
Universal / courtesy Everett Collection
“People sometimes misconstrue the amount of time that’s gone by that I haven’t done a romantic comedy as my not wanting to do one,” she explained.
Buena Vista Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
“If I had read something that I thought was that Notting Hill level of writing or My Best Friend’s Wedding level of madcap fun, I would do it. They didn’t exist until [Ticket to Paradise].”
MCA / courtesy Everett Collection
“Here’s the thing: If I’d thought something was good enough, I would have done it,” she continued. “But I also had three kids in the last 18 years. That raises the bar even more because then it’s not only ‘Is this material good?’”
Mca / courtesy Everett Collection
“As they get older, and particularly with my daughter, I do have a sense of responsibility for showing my children that I can be creative and that it’s meaningful to me — so meaningful that for periods of time I will choose to focus on that almost more than my family, which has been hard for me to come to terms with.”
Columbia Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
We’ll find out how her return to the romantic comedy sphere turned out when Ticket to Paradise hits theaters later this year.
Warner Bros / courtesy Everett Collection
(This, by the way, is not an image from that film — it’s from Ocean’s Eleven, which Julia was also in with George.)
Read the entire interview here.
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