Julia Roberts won't strip down for roles, celebrates 'G-rated career'

The movie star has spoken candidly about not going nude in the past

One of Hollywood's leading actresses for several decades, Julia Roberts, won't mince words about her career. She thinks it's been "G-rated."

As the cover star of British Vogue's February edition, Roberts was asked if she feels obligated to behave a certain way in both her personal and professional life. "Do you ever think, ‘I’m representing something?'" the outlet asked her.

"I think it would be more to the point that the things I choose not to do are representative of me," she suggested, adding that her "G-rated career" is an example of this.

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Julia Roberts in a red jacket and shorts on the cover of British Vogue

Julia Roberts got candid about her decision to not go nude in movies. (Lachlan Bailey/British Vogue)

Expanding on "G-rated," the "Erin Brockovich" actress was quick to clarify she is not looking to judge others for their choices. "You know, not to be criticizing others’ choices, but for me to not take off my clothes in a movie or be vulnerable in physical ways is a choice that I guess I make for myself. But in effect, I’m choosing not to do something as opposed to choosing to do something," she explained.

The actress has been transparent in the past about her conscious decision not to do nudity. "You know it's not really what I do, so if you are going to ask me to do it, you have to expect it to be toned down. You know, as a mom of three, I feel like that," she reportedly told The Standard in 2012. Roberts shares twins Hazel and Phinnaeus, 19, and son Henry, 16, with her husband, Danny Moder.

Julia Roberts and husband Danny Moder engage in conversation with Dr. Anthony Fauci

Julia Roberts married Danny Moder in 2002. The couple has three children together. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

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Roberts also knows what works for her. "I love the genre," she says of romantic comedies. "I mean, my desert island movie would probably be ‘The Philadelphia Story.’ I also think it’s incredibly tricky. I never realized the windfall of good fortune I had until it was well behind me. Like, to have made ‘Pretty Woman,’ ‘Notting Hill’ and ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding.’ They just don’t come one after another [normally]. So I think I got lucky," she said of seeing success. 

Being so confident, Roberts can adamantly say that dying in film is also not for her. "Happy not to die. Happy to die less," she quipped.

Julia Roberts in a dark orange dress with a slit lies on the floor against a couch in a picture for British Vogue

Julia Roberts is also not interested in doing films where her character dies. (Lachlan Bailey/British Vogue)

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Roberts also touched upon how Hollywood has changed, noting things are different since she emerged on the scene in her young 20s. "Oh, it’s completely different from my time. I mean, that’s when I really feel like a dinosaur, when you just look at the structure of the business. It’s completely different," she told the outlet. "I don’t know if it’s better, because it’s not my experience, but it just seems very different. And in a way, it seems so cluttered."

Julia Roberts sits on a counter in the bathroom for a picture taken for British Vogue

Julia Roberts believes Hollywood has changed significantly since she garnered fame. (Lachlan Bailey/British Vogue)

"There are so many elements to being famous now, it just seems exhausting. Whereas I feel like, and again this is just my perception, because I don’t really know – I’m not a young person starting out in show business in the 21st century – but it seems to me that it was: you meet people, you read for parts, you try to get jobs, you get a job, you try to do a good job, and from that job, you might meet some new people who might suggest you to some other people and then you might get another job and you might get paid a little bit more for that job, and it might be a little bit of a better job," she explained.

"It kind of just made this sort of structural sense, and now it just seems more chaotic. There’s more elements, there’s more noise, there’s more outlets, there’s more stuff," she says about fame.

See the full feature in the February issue of British Vogue, available via digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday, Jan. 16. 

Caroline Thayer is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Follow Caroline Thayer on Twitter at @carolinejthayer. Story tips can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Authored by Caroline Thayer via FoxNews January 11th 2024