Julia Roberts reveals she wouldn’t star in Pretty Woman if the film were made today

Julia Roberts has said she wouldn’t star in Pretty Woman if the film were made today.

The actress, 58, played prostitute Vivian Ward in the beloved 1990 romantic comedy but claimed it would be ‘impossible’ for her to appear in such a picture now because views have changed.

Julia told Deadline: ‘Oh, it’s impossible. 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 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, kind of… I guess it’s just being young.’

Opinions on Pretty Woman – in which Julia’s character forms a relationship with wealthy corporate raider Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) – have shifted over time and Julia can understand why some are now uncomfortable with the movie.

The Erin Brockovich star explained: ‘Well, I think anytime you have a huge passage of time and cultural shifts…

‘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?”

Julia added: ‘I think these are the choices that we make as artists, as art appreciators and people that love to read books and go to the theatre and yeah, times change, people change, ideas change.’

Pretty Woman was a huge commercial success, grossing $463.4million at the box office and catapulted Julia to superstardom.   

Last year, Julia spoke to Notting Hill director Richard Curtis in an interview with Vogue, where she opened up about why it was hard for her to accept the role of Anna Scott, another of her most memorable parts.

‘Honestly, one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was your movie, playing a movie actress.

‘I was so uncomfortable! I almost didn’t take the part because it just seemed – oh, it just seemed so awkward. I didn’t even know how to play that person.’

Julia is married to cinematographer Danny Moder, 55, and tied the knot more than two decades ago.

The couple work hard to keep their romance private which has proved to do well for them as their relationship continues to go from strength to strength.

They have gone on to welcome three children together – Hazel, 2, Henry, 18, and Phinnaeus, 21.

Julia and Danny first met in 2000 on set of the movie The Mexican, where he was working as a cameraman and she was starring as Brad Pitt’s love interest, Samantha.

At the time, they were both taken by other people – she was in a romance with actor Benjamin Bratt, while Danny was married to makeup artist Vera Steimberg.

Julia later reflected on growing close to Danny while making the movie to Oprah in 2003.

‘On the set, I get pretty relaxed. These guys see me at five in the morning, when I come stumbling onto the set like, “What the hell is going on?”‘ she joked.

‘In those circumstances, you can see what a person’s really made of. Some great friendships can be formed because you see one another at your best and worst.

‘[I was] stressed-out, maxed-out, exhausted, not knowing which end is up. And you rely on each other so much. So I think that had a profound effect on our friendship.’

After she and Benjamin split in June 2001 and Danny filed for divorce from his wife that same year, they quickly started dating.