Staying Fit
During the 1990s rom-com boom, Julia Roberts became one of its preeminent leading ladies, with a string of smash hits from Pretty Woman to My Best Friend’s Wedding and Notting Hill. After a hiatus from the genre — she says she hadn’t come across any scripts that captured those previous films’ levels of “madcap fun”— she’s making a triumphant return Oct. 21, opposite George Clooney in Ticket to Paradise. The longtime friends play a divorced couple forced to reunite in Bali as they plot to stop their daughter’s wedding. In honor of this rom-com queen returning to the fold, we’ve rounded up (and ranked!) Roberts’ top 10 rom-com roles.
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10. America’s Sweethearts (2001)
The love interest: John Cusack
The plot: It might seem meta that an actress often called “America’s Sweetheart” would play a romantic lead in a movie called America’s Sweethearts about, well, actors. However, Roberts takes the role of the less-than-glamorous Kiki, a sister-slash-personal assistant to an actress (Catherine Zeta-Jones) who’s recently broken up with her husband and costar, Eddie (Cusack). While serving as a go-between for her sister and Eddie, Kiki begins developing a connection of her own with her sister’s ex.
Watch it: America’s Sweethearts on Apple TV, Prime Video
9. Larry Crowne (2011)
The love interest: Tom Hanks
The plot: Roberts plays a community college speech professor, Mercedes Tainot, feeling uninspired by her work and her marriage. That is, until she meets Larry Crowne (Hanks), a recently laid-off big-box store employee who enrolls in an attempt to improve his life. Of course, the two forge a friendship that begins to develop into something more. (Hanks also directs, and cowrote the script.)
Watch it: Larry Crowne on HBO Max
Don’t miss this: Tom Hanks’ 10 Most Heartwarming Roles, Rated!
8. Something to Talk About (1995)
The love interest: Dennis Quaid
The plot: Roberts taps into her Southern roots as Grace, the manager of a riding stable who, after discovering her husband (Quaid) is cheating on her, moves in with her sister (Kyra Sedgwick). While Grace’s parents try to convince her to get back together with her husband, her sister helps her start thinking outside the constraints of her daily life.
Behind the scenes: Sedgwick asked Roberts to help get her to squeal in one scene, and when it came time to film it, Roberts pranked Sedgwick.
Watch it: Something to Talk About on Apple TV
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