Julia Roberts reveals she was “uncomfortable” in ‘Notting Hill’
Julia Roberts has reflected on her performance in the romantic comedy Notting Hill and revealed she was “uncomfortable” with playing an actor in the film.
In the movie, her character is the Hollywood star Anna Scott, who falls for a bumbling bookshop owner, portrayed by Hugh Grant. However, the role proved a challenge for Roberts, who recently revealed in a new interview that it was difficult to play somebody in the same profession as herself.
Speaking to Vogue, Roberts explained why she found the movie difficult. For the first time in her career, the actor was tasked with playing somebody whom she shared distinct similarities with, which left her feeling uneasy. “Honestly, one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was your movie, playing a movie actress,” she told the film’s writer, Richard Curtis, “I was so uncomfortable!”
“I mean, we’ve talked about this so many times, but I almost didn’t take the part because it seemed – oh, it just seemed so awkward. I didn’t even know how to play that person,” she continued.
Roberts also admitted she “loathed” the costumes she had to wear in the film, as she was dressed up like a typical celebrity. It was only in the iconic “I’m just a girl” scene that the actor felt like herself, which was largely down to her decision to wear her own clothes.
She explained: “My driver, lovely Tommy, I sent him back to my flat that morning. I said ‘Go into my bedroom and grab this, this and this out of my closet’. And it was my own flip-flops and my cute little blue velvet skirt and a T-shirt and my cardigan.”
The scene went down in history as one of the most recognisable moments in romantic cinema, which arrived as a shock to Roberts. “I mean, it was a great scene. But who knew that that would become the line,” she said.
Roberts’ comments arrive after Curtis recently revealed he regrets the treatment of women in his past films and the lack of diversity in his films, such as Notting Hill.
The writer said at the Cheltenham Literature Festival: “I wish I’d been ahead of the curve. Because I came from a very universe, school and bunch of university friends, I think that I’ve hung on, on the diversity issue, to the feeling that I wouldn’t know how to write those parts.”
He added: “I think I was just sort of stupid and wrong about that.”