Julia Roberts shattered the glass ceiling for top female movie stars when she ordered $20 million for ‘Erin Brockovich’ in 2000. Until then, no actress had been paid as well as her counterparts males such as Tom Cruise or Tom Hanks, who ruled the box office of the 90s alongside Roberts.
During the A+E Networks and History Channel’s History Talks in Washington DC on Saturday, moderator Gayle King asked Roberts about the negotiation tactics she used to get equal pay.
“I didn’t feel so boxy about it, but I was like, ‘Come on,'” Roberts said. “Let’s be realistic. Let’s be fair.'”
Roberts acknowledged that she earned her paycheck, after rocking hits such as ‘Pretty Woman’, ‘Notting Hill’ and ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’.
“When I work, I work really hard,” Roberts said. “I’m ready. I’m on time. I’m prepared. I’m happy. I bet everything. So show me the money.
During their conversation, Roberts and King also discussed the challenges of speaking up. Often, for women, King said, “taking the high road” — in pay deals and other things — means “shut up.” But Roberts maintained that she was never afraid of being penalized for standing up for herself.
“I really can’t help it,” Roberts said. “I am an ordinary speaker and I say what I think. I try to be thoughtful with my words. I don’t fly off, but I’m pretty direct. Not everyone pleases me.
King pressed Roberts to elaborate on this latter sentiment.
“I think some people would say I’m tough or strict or intense, which secretly makes me laugh. I’m so glad someone thinks that,” Roberts said. But, she adds, “It’s okay to be bossy about a situation without worrying that people won’t like you. I like to be liked, but I also like things to be right.
When asked to name her favorite movie, Roberts slyly dodged the question – saying her friend, surfer Kelly Slater, once answered that request for her, pointing to 2001 romantic comedy ‘The Mexican’ where she met her husband, Daniel Moder.
After 20 years of marriage, King asked if Roberts still had butterflies. “Don’t do this to me, Gayle. Yes, I know that,” she admitted.
Roberts, decades into his Hollywood career, still feels “utter joy, giddy awe at having a job that is my complete lifelong dream.” She added: “I pretend. I dress in clothes that are not mine.
As her children grow up, she says, she realizes it’s important for them to see her leave home to pursue her own ambitions. “There’s this guilt, as a mother, of leaving and doing something and feeling selfish in that moment,” she said. “I had to, with great encouragement from my husband, learn to take that space for myself and not feel like it was taking away from someone else.”
Toward the end of the conversation, Roberts recalled the early days of the pandemic when she interviewed Dr. Anthony Fauci on Instagram for the public health nonprofit ONE Campaign. Roberts shared that she still hasn’t been diagnosed with COVID.
“I have a very warm constitution. I don’t get sick often. I can eat anything. I’m not allergic to anything,” she said. “I’m an ox in a girl’s body.”
