How Julia Roberts Found Out Her Famous Last Name Isn't Her Real One
Julia Roberts has been informed about a surprising fact regarding her name. The "Pretty Woman" star was born Julia Fiona Roberts. Following in the footsteps of her famous brother, Eric Roberts, the actor started to gain fame during the late '80s, with some of her earliest roles being parts in "Mystic Pizza" and "Steel Magnolias."
Though she has become a household name, Roberts is not the only person who goes by "Julia Roberts." When she stopped by "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in 2015, Roberts was visited by nine people who have the same first and last name as her. The performer also detailed how she previously met another Julia Roberts. "Well, I guess I am self-centered, and [it] never occurred to me that anybody else would be named Julia Roberts ... until a girl came up to me, and she said, 'Oh, I just wanna say hi. My name is Julia Roberts,'" Roberts said. "And I was like, 'What?! That is incredible.'"
Recently, the actor took the steps to find out more about her family history, which resulted in a jaw-dropping name discovery.
A DNA test showed that Julia Roberts technically has a different last name
Julia Roberts was told a shocking revelation about her last name. In January 2023, Roberts took part in an episode of "Finding Your Roots," during which she spoke with professor and literary critic Henry Louis Gates, Jr. about her results from a DNA test. In this conversation, Gates stated that Roberts' "biological great-great-grandfather" was Henry McDonald Mitchell, Jr. Through his research, Gates discovered that Rhoda Suttle, Julia's great-great-grandmother, had an affair with Mitchell after the death of Suttle's husband, Willis Roberts. This affair led to the birth of Julia's great-grandfather, John Roberts.
In response, Roberts asked, "So we're Mitchells?" Gates Jr. then said, "You're Julia Mitchell. You are not a Roberts biologically." The actor discussed her mixed emotions over this unexpected news. "On the one hand, truly, my mind is blown," Roberts said. "And it is fascinating. And on the other hand, there's part of me, that when I'm calmer, can still wrap my arms around the idea that my family is my family. And I do prefer the name Roberts."
As Entertainment Tonight reported, the actor also learned that she and fellow celeb Edward Norton have "a distant ancestor" in common through the DNA results.
Julia Roberts says family life is 'the best stuff'
With this deep dive into her ancestry, it's clear that Julia Roberts values her family unit. The "My Best Friend's Wedding" actor tied the knot with Danny Moder back in 2002. During their decades-long marriage, the two have gone on to have three children together: twins Phinnaeus and Hazel, as well as Henry. In a 2022 "CBS Sunday Morning" interview, Roberts said that success in Hollywood "is not [her] only dream come true" before talking about the importance of her family. "The life that I've built with my husband, the life that we've built with our children — that's the best stuff, to come home at the end of the day, triumphantly to them," Roberts said.
Roberts has taken to social media to honor her family in the past, such as when she celebrated a milestone birthday for Phinnaeus and Hazel in 2022 via Instagram. Roberts wrote the sweet message, "18 ... Love you" alongside a throwback photo of herself with the twins when they were babies. Additionally, for Moder's birthday in 2022, Roberts posted a photo of her hubby with the caption, "Happy Everything ... you make my world go round."