Having appeared in very popular titles including Pretty Women, Closer, and Erin Brockovich, Julia Roberts has established herself as one of the most successful actresses in Hollywood. TechTrends put together a list of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time to help you decide which one you want to watch.
Ticket to Paradise, a romantic comedy movie starring Julia Roberts and George Clooney was released in 2022, with Hollywood welcoming Julia Roberts in 1987 and 35 years later she is continuing to do amazing in blockbusters. Roberts has acted in around 45 movies and has one Academy Award under her belt. She also won a British Academy Film Award and three Golden Globe Awards. During the 90s and the early 2000s, Julia Roberts was among the highest-paid actresses in the world. Keep reading this article by TechTrends to tour out her most amazing movies and performances throughout the years. Without further ado, let’s get to the list of the best must-see Julia Roberts performances, ranked based on their rating on .
Best Julia Roberts Movies of All Time
Still named as cinema’s sweetheart, Julia Roberts has made a name for herself in the industry with her amazing filmography. She is one of the most popular and beloved actresses, and her talent earned her a lot of incredible roles throughout the years. This iconic actress has won the heart of her fans for more than three decades. Her face, her smile and her laugh helped her make hit after hit. In the honor of her incredible career, TechTrends decided to narrow down a list of the best Julia Roberts films of all time although it was not a simple task. Let’s jump into it.
11. My Best Friend’s Wedding 1997
- Genre: Romance/Rom-Com
- Director: J. Hogan
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, Rupert Everett, Christopher Masterson
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 74%, IMDb 6.3
Julia Roberts is the queen of rom-com and her performance in the movie My Best Friend’s Wedding is amazing as usual. Cameron Diaz had a supporting role in this movie that starred Julia Roberts. Winning the attention and loyalty of the audience playing opposite Roberts is quite a daunting task, as she was at the height of her career then, but Diaz did it masterfully. Roberts portrays the role of a woman whose college friend wants to marry Diaz, but Roberts wants to marry him herself and decides to break up the wedding. You don’t want to miss it as we strongly recommend this rom-com. This is indeed one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time.
Read more: Best Cameron Diaz Movies of All Time
10. Pretty Woman 1990
- Genre: Romance/Comedy
- Director: Garry Marshall
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Laura San Giacomo, Hector Elizondo, Jason Alexander
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 64%, IMDb 7.1
Pretty Woman is one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time, where she portrays the role of Vivian Ward. Roberts’ performance of this character brought her a Golden Globe Award as well as a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Despite the movie being intended to be a dark story about sex work and class at first, it was re-conceived later. Roberts’ character is a sex worker who earns a lot of money when she runs to Richard Gere’s character Edward Lewis, who is a cold and lonely businessman. This is for sure one of her best performances, having every viewer rooting for her.
9. Michael Collins 1996
- Genre: Drama/War
- Director: Neil Jordan
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Alan Rickman, Stephen Rea, Brendan Gleeson
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 78%, IMDb 7.1
The ninth one on the list of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time is Michael Collins, which is a historical biopic of Irish revolutionary. Julia Roberts plays the role of Kitty Kierman. Despite it not being her best performance, her endeavor is eye-catching. Her character is the fiancé of the well-known Irish revolutionary commander and hero, portrayed by Liam Neeson. His character is quite vengeful. In addition, Roberts’ Irish and American accents could be heard mixed together throughout the movie. If you are a fan of historical movies, this is the one for you.
8. August: Osage County 2013
- Genre: Drama/Comedy
- Director: John Wells
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Abigail Breslin, Benedict Cumberbatch
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 67%, IMDb 7.2
The movie August: Osage County is based on a play of the same name by Tracy Letts. This amazing tragicomedy has Julia Roberts playing the role of Barbara Weston, who is on the verge of getting a divorce. Her performance earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role. The movie was about a dysfunctional family and Julia was able to add maturity to the character she was portraying. Moreover, she did an incredible job of adding sensitivity, emotions and tension to it as well. The story revolved around her and the chemistry she and Meryl Streep shared. This is yet another one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time.
Read more: Best Meryl Streep Movies of All Time
7. Closer 2004
- Genre: Romance/Drama
- Director: Mike Nichols
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Clive Owen, Jude Law, Nick Hobbs
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 68%, IMDb 7.2
In the movie Closer, which is an adaptation of Patrick Marber’s play set in mid-00s London, Julia Roberts plays the role of Anna Cameron, who is a flawed, selfish and immature. Natalie Portman plays the role of Alice, who is an American stripper who escaped New York to end her relationship. The story is about four people who do not deserve one another. Two couples who fall in love but drop out of affection, then swap accomplices. They then swap back again and, in that process, they betray one another in ways that humans are proficient enough. Alice steals the show with and makes this one of Natalie Portman greatest movie roles.
However, despite Roberts’ performance being understated, audiences praise the plausibility of her acting. She is able to charge with power through all her scenes, making fascinating moments. This is indeed one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time.
Read more: Best Natalie Portman Movies of All Time
6. Notting Hill 1999
- Genre: Romance/Comedy
- Director: Roger Michell
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant, Rhys Ifans, Hugh Bonneville, Gina McKee, Emma Chambers
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 84%, IMDb 7.2
The all-time British Box office record was broken by Notting Hill in 1999. The story revolves around a London Bookseller portrayed by Hugh Grant and an actress, played by Julia Roberts. She portrays the character of Anna Scott, who is famous but fragile. The theme of the movie is about love between people of different social classes and Roberts and Grant’s chemistry showcases that quite beautifully. Despite being attractive and successful, Anna is insecure and concerned about losing her reputation, money and building relationship with men. Her portrayal of those concerns are excellent and this is one of the best Julia Roberts movies ever.
5. Steel Magnolias 1989
- Genre: Drama/Comedy Drama
- Director: Herbert Ross
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Robert Harling, Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine, Dolly Parton
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 66%, IMDb 7.3
The fifth one on the list of the best Julia Roberts films ever is Steel Magnolias, an adaptation of Robert Harling’s 1987 play of the same name. The story revolves around six ladies who frequent the same beauty salon and it is one of the most powerful female-lead movies ever. Julia Robert earned a nomination for an Oscar for the Best Actress in a Supporting Role category. Roberts’ character is a diabetic lady who is adamant that risking everything for a child is quite worth it. For her health problems, Roberts and the other ladies grow closer, notwithstanding their differences. Roberts’ performance can make the audience laugh and cry at the same time. We highly recommend this wonderful film.
4. Erin Brockovich 2000
- Genre: Drama/Romance
- Director: Steven Soderbergh
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Erin Brockovich, Albert Finney, Aaron Eckhart, Marg Helgenberger, Peter Coyote, Scarlett Pomers, Cherry Jones
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 85%, IMDb 7.4
Julia Robert’s Oscar-winning performance was in the movie Erin Brockovich. No acting critic will ever forget her fascinating performance in this movie. Erin Brockovich is a biographical drama that has Roberts playing the role of a jobless, twice-divorced mother of three kids who is desperate to find a means to be able to back her family. Her character is quite dynamic, showing her skill in every way possible. Roberts was able to showcase her talent in comedy, drama, and romance all together in Erin Brockovich. No one could have played this role as well as Roberts did. Therefore, this is one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time. Make sure to add it to your watch-list if you haven’t watched it already.
3. Ocean’s Eleven 2001
- Genre: Crime/Comedy
- Director: Steven Soderbergh
- Stars: George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Andy Gracia, Bernie Mac
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 83%, IMDb 7.7
Another one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time is Ocean’s Eleven, where she portrays the role of Tess Ocean. She is the former wife of Ocean and is currently dating the casino’s owner, whom they want to loot. Her persona as an incredible actor can be seen in the film. George Clooney portrays the role of master thief Danny Ocean. He makes plans for a high-stakes robbery of three casinos in Las Vegas in one night. After losing his wife Tess to gambling mogul Terry Benedict, he is keen on getting revenge. Terry is the owner of all the casinos he plans to rob. Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon made an unofficial modern Rat Pack. Moreover, he led the cast in two more sequels that came after. Don’t miss Ocean’s Eleven as it is one of Julia Robert’s greatest movie roles.
Read more: Best George Clooney Movies of All Time
2. Wonder 2017
- Genre: Drama/Family
- Director: Stephen Chbosky
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Jacob Tremblay, Owen Wilson, Izabela Vidovic, Noah Jupe, Bryce Gheisar, Danielle Rose Russell
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 85%, IMDb 7.9
Another one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time is Wonder, which came out in 2017. The movie is based on the 2012 novel by R. J. Palacio. This coming-of-age drama movie tells the tale of a boy called August Pullman, who has Treacher Collins syndrome. Roberts’ character in the movie is August’s mother, Isabel. She is a loving mom who tries her best to show her son how special he is. They make the decision to enroll their child in a public school, but the husband is worried about how his classmates would treat August. Roberts shows her character as a very strong mother, while also being luminous and radiant like always. Wonder is indeed one of the greatest Julia Roberts movies of all time. Don’t miss it.
1. The Normal Heart 2014
- Genre: Drama/Television
- Director: Ryan Murphy
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Mark Ruffalo, Jim Parsons, Matt Bomer, Taylor Kitsch
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 94%, IMDb 7.9
Although the movie The Normal Heart is not well-known, it is considered one of the best Julia Roberts movies of all time as it is pretty moving and emotional. It tells the story of a homosexual activists group in New York back in the 1980s. They try to bring it to other people’s attentions and spread the truth regarding the HIV-AIDs problem. Julia Roberts plays the role of a doctor and her character fits her perfectly. She is doctor Emma Brookner in the television drama movie, which is about the AIDS crisis. Her persona in the film is full of hope and deserving of admiration for its compassion. Mark Ruffalo’s performance in the movie was very strong as he masterfully captured the frustration and anger that comes with a sensitive topic. He was able to perform the role with the perfect amount of compassion.
Read more: Best Mark Ruffalo Movies of All Time