Julia Roberts has quite the famous family, and it’s not just her niece Emma Roberts. Both her siblings, older brother and Emma’s father Eric Roberts and older sister Lisa Roberts Gillan, are actors as well.
The actress, 56, was reportedly estranged from her older brother, 68, for several years, and while they’ve mended fences in recent years, they will shy away from talking about each other to maintain a sense of privacy.
Eric, who boasts credits like Runaway Train, The Dark Knight, and Babylon, spoke in a recent interview about not being able to speak much about his sister and daughter, 33.
On the Still Here Hollywood podcast, when he was asked about his Oscar-nominated sister, he simply responded: “You’ll have to ask her. I love my sister, but I can’t talk about her. She don’t want to talk about it.”
He also admitted that his daughter had also “told me not to talk about her, but I stumbled and do. I’m not supposed to talk about either of them. But I do.”
However, Eric then resorted to praising his daughter’s work and immediately became the proud dad. “I’m in love with my daughter’s work these day. I can’t believe how great she’s become. I’m so proud of her I can’t see straight.”
© Getty ImagesHe continued: “Since her performance in Maybe I Do until right now, she overwhelms me with pride and just, ‘Oh my God, here she goes again.’ And I’m just so happy to be her dad, because she’s kicking [expletive]. And I’m so proud.”
When Eric was asked whether he did anything to contribute to her success, he responded: “Absolutely nothing. Except I gave her that name.”
MORE:Â Julia Roberts and husband Danny Moder celebrate happy news with rare intimate photo
In a 2018 Vanity Fair interview, he opened up for the first time about the years of estrangement from both his sisters, stemming primarily from his years-long substance abuse issues.
© Getty Images“I wouldn’t characterize it as a falling-out,” he remarked “I was crazy about my sisters. Loved them, adored them. They were precious to me, and we had times of great closeness. We all felt very protective of each other, but the hardest person to protect yourself from is yourself.”Â
The actor admitted he was “exhausting to be around,” adding he was “complainy, blamey, unable to enjoy enjoyment. Everyone in my world needed a break sometimes, and that must have included Julia.”
© Getty ImagesHe also credited himself with first achieving success in the late ’70s for paving the way for his little sister and daughter with Kelly Cunningham to make their mark in the industry.
MORE:Â Julia Roberts’ ‘towering’ teen son Henry celebrates birthday, see rare photo
“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. 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?'”Â
© Getty Images“And I am so proud that everybody knows I was first, because I was first by a long shot. I was first to get Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations, so I’m proud of that.”
