Actress Julia Roberts has long been considered the queen of romantic comedies starting with “Pretty Woman” and continuing with 1990s hits like “Notting Hill” and “My Best Friend’s Wedding.” Many have been confused about why Roberts has seemingly avoided the genre entirely over the last two decades and it looks like we got an answer.
Roberts will be making a big comeback to the rom-com alongside George Clooney this fall with “Ticket To Paradise,” and has revealed to The New York Times that she simply hadn’t been getting exciting scripts that compelled her enough to take time away from her family.
“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. 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.”
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“Here’s the thing: If I’d thought something was good enough, I would have done it. But I also had three kids in the last 18 years,” Roberts added. “That raises the bar even more because then it’s not only ‘Is this material good?’ It’s also the math equation of my husband’s work schedule and the kids’ school schedule and summer vacation. It’s not just, ‘Oh, I think I want to do this.’”
When asked what drew her into making “Ticket To Paradise,” Roberts was quick to mention her “Ocean’s Eleven” co-star coaxing her was a key aspect.
“But even with that, I thought, ‘Well, disaster, because this only works if it’s George Clooney,’” Roberts admitted. “Lo and behold, George felt it only worked with me. Somehow we were both able to do it, and off we went.”
Roberts will never say never about returning again to the rom-com genre in the future.
“I love to laugh and be funny,” she said. “You get into that mode of those endorphins going off when you’re clever and people going, ‘Oh!’ Then that becomes this automatic thing where you’re always thinking in terms of creating fun. It’s a joy to play in that sandbox. It has been a long time.”
If you’re excited to see Roberts back in the genre, “Ticket To Paradise” will be released on October 21 by Universal.