Topics: Domestic Abuse, Blake Lively, Celebrity, Film and TV, TikTok
Julia Roberts is being praised for the way she acted in a resurfaced 1991 interview, with many comparing it to a not so well recieved one involving Blake Lively.
Roberts has long been in the spotlight having starred in cult classics such as Pretty Woman, Notting Hill, My Best Friend's Wedding and, most recently, Leave the World Behind, but it's the press she did for her film Sleeping with the Enemy that's got people talking of late.
Roberts starred as Laura Burney in the 1991 movie, a young woman who fakes her own death in a bid to escape her abusive marriage.
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With the nature of the film in mind, Roberts was asked by the late veteran reporter and film critic Bobbie Wygant about how she would respond should she ever find herself in a relationship like the one her character was in.
While Roberts was only 23 at the time of the interview the young actress gave an extremely mature response.
"That's not for me to really say," she replied. "I can't even fathom being in a situation quite that horrible. It's not in my realms of understanding."
Interviewer Wygant then went on to say that she would 'just fight back' if she were in Roberts' character's shoes, adding that she wouldn't have been able to withstand such treatment for three and a half years.
"But I think it's a process of manipulation that grows stronger than that," Roberts cut in. "It's not that cut and dry."
She added: "I think it's amazingly psychological and very destructive, so I don't think it's quite that simple."
The decades-old interview is now doing the rounds online amid backlash Blake Lively has received for some of her responses to similar questions she's faced recently, as her new movie It Ends With Us also features themes of domestic abuse.
While Roberts took a more serious approach to such topics, Lively has answers similar questions in a much lighter tone.
With the criticism she's facing in mind, people have urged the 36-year-old Gossip Girl favorite to 'take notes' from Roberts.
One person commented on a now-viral TikTok of Roberts' interview: "Very well said. Blake should take notes."
A second added: "I was just talking about this movie and Julia’s responses unlike Blake’s response to the question today…how did she not understand the assignment????"
Noting that Roberts was only young when filming such a hard-hitting movie, another person penned: "She was only 22 years old and already so wise and articulate."
"Her tone is on point," wrote someone else. "It's a serious movie so she’s answering with sincerity aka not making jokes."
UNILAD has previously approached Lively's reps in light of the criticism she's faced.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, please know that you are not alone. You can talk in confidence 24 hours a day to the national domestic violence helpline on 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) 24/7. You can find a list of local resources here.
