Julia Roberts was only 22 years old when she starred in “Pretty Woman,” the 1990 film that made her a superstar.
The romantic comedy, which also starred Richard Gere, was a massive hit, grossing more than $463 million worldwide. Roberts portrays Vivian Ward, a kind-hearted prostitute who ends up falling in love with millionaire Edward Lewis, Gere’s character.
So would Roberts, now 58, consider making the movie if it was offered to her today?
“Oh, it’s impossible,” Roberts says in an interview with Deadline. “I have too many years of the weight of the world inside of me now that I wouldn’t be able to kind of levitate in a movie like that, right? I mean, not weight of the world, like, negative, but just all the things that we learn, all the things that we put in our pockets along the lane. It would be impossible to play someone who was really innocent, in a way.
“I mean, it’s a funny thing to say about a hooker, but I do think that there was an innocence to her, a kind of… I guess it’s just being young.”
Roberts concedes that the perception of “Pretty Woman” has changed over the years and not everyone sees it as a harmless rom-com.
“Well, I think anytime you have a huge passage of time and cultural shifts…” she tells Deadline. “Think about all the movies and plays of the ’20s and ’30s and ’40s — you would look at them now and just be like, ‘How are people saying these things, doing these things?’”
Roberts spoke with Deadline while promoting her 2025 film “After the Hunt.” She has been nominated for a Golden Globe for best actress for her role as a college professor whose student accuses another professor of sexual assault.