The Shady Side Of The Roberts Family

Please note: This article contains references to domestic abuse and drug use. 

They're one of the most impressive living dynasties that Hollywood has to offer — but like many celebrity families, the shady side of the Roberts family runs deep. Like a family chart at the start of a Russian classic, let us take you through the main players at hand here: There's Eric Roberts, the prolific star of over 600 productions with a troubled past and an interesting present. His sister, Julia — '90s superstar and tall-haired tabloid heartbreaker. And then there's Eric's daughter, and Julia's niece, Emma, who you'll likely recognize best from playing a variety of mean girls in "American Horror Story" and "Scream Queens." 

Eric, Emma, and Julia all enjoy different aspects of Hollywood infamy at this point. In their careers and their personal lives, all three have courted positive and negative attention and found themselves the subjects of countless tabloid hit-pieces. Be it romantic drama, bad behavior, drug use, or scandals, all three have proven that the Roberts' sure know how to draw a crowd.

As Leo Tolstoy put it at the beginning of "Anna Karenina," "All happy families are alike, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."  Judging from the shady side of the Roberts family, the following may be some of the ways that this particular family has been unhappy over the years.

The real apex of the shady side of the Roberts family can be traced back to 1993 when Eric Roberts was embroiled in a tough custody battle against ex-partner Kelly Cunningham for two-year-old daughter Emma. As News & Record reported, the actor had served Cunningham with "papers demanding her appearance in court," however his ex-partner — described as being "of more modest means than Eric" — couldn't afford her own lawyer.

Enter Eric's sister, Julia Roberts, who fronted the money so that Cunningham could get one. Understandably, the move didn't sit well with Eric, who confirmed to Vanity Fair that his "longtime drug use" had alienated his sister and made him "exhausting to be around." Subsequently, the two spent years estranged from each other, though he downplayed the disagreement to the magazine as being something that he "wouldn't characterize as a falling-out."

A little over ten years later, the two had apparently patched up their problems. Julia gave birth to twins, and Eric was graciously welcomed back into the fold to celebrate their arrival, "I was ushered into their room and was immediately awash in brotherly and uncle-ly love," he told Vanity Fair. With one tender moment, the siblings had managed to let bygones be bygones with Eric gushing to People that their sibling relationship was back to how it should be, "Everybody's healthy, happy and wise, " he said. 

It's understandable that Julia Roberts reportedly lost the energy to deal with her brother's addiction issues, given the severity of them. Eric Roberts' history with drug use led to a catastrophic car accident in 1981 which he confessed to Vanity Fair was because he was "high on cocaine" and which left him in a coma for three days. In 1987, his drug use became so grave that he was eventually arrested.

As reported by UPI, Hollywood's most prolific B-movie star was charged "with second-degree assault and criminal trespass as well as possession of cocaine and marijuana" after assaulting a cop and harassing a woman, after repeatedly banging on her apartment door. Sadly his run-ins with the law didn't end there. In 1995, he was arrested on suspicion of spousal abuse after he allegedly pushed his wife Eliza into a wall, according to police officers (via AP News). 

Speaking about the incident a year later, both Eric and Eliza — who remain together to this day — denied that he'd inflicted any physical abuse against her during an interview with SFGate. On the contrary, the actor's version of events suggests that he'd "fought with his agent over the phone" and subsequently stormed off in his car after yelling at his wife (not great form, but okay...). By the time he'd "cooled off" and returned home Eliza had already called for help, "She had dialed 911 to say, 'My husband needs to be stopped,'" he explained. 

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Eric Roberts' well-documented struggles with addiction led him to the inevitable spiritual landfill of "Celebrity Rehab" in 2010. As his wife and manager Eliza expressed to Vanity Fair, they were well aware of how "these shows are sanctioned voyeurism" but did it anyway. It paid off — casting agents began to look at him "more supportively" following his appearance, with Eliza saying, "Some of the best shows he's done, he's done since 'Celebrity Rehab.'" It probably helped that Eric confessed to having generated some additional drama on the show for publicity.

The "Stalked By My Doctor" star made the admission while chatting with the hosts of the charmingly titled podcast "Eric Roberts Is The F***ing Man." Roberts — a notable weed enthusiast — was there to conquer his dependency on marijuana, amidst a cast of contestants who were "coming off of heroin, or... oxycontin." Comparatively, his struggle was mild and it didn't make for great TV, as he quipped, "Me, marijuana, I'm fine, I have a headache."

Producers subsequently called Eliza to complain that while everyone else had "breakdowns" and "cried three or four times," Eric merely "yawn[ed] a lot." Under threat of being ejected for being a bore, the actor stepped up the drama by faking some tears and — quite notoriously — having some serious words with former supermodel Janice Dickinson which ended with him calling her a "c**t." Yep, that'll do it, alright. 

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Given the overall drama of the Roberts dynasty, you might think that Eric Roberts would be a little more thoughtful about how he phrases things in public about his famous kin — but apparently not. When chatting to Vanity Fair about how happy he was to be back in the good graces of his family, he made the mistake of crediting the incredible careers of his sister and daughter to himself. "If it wasn't for me, there would be no Julia Roberts and no Emma Roberts as celebrities, as actresses" he bragged to the magazine, "I'm very proud of that."

Explaining how he'd set Julia up with getting herself signed the second she "came to New York," the star reflected that he was also "first by a long shot" in terms of making it big and receiving Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations. Apparently, his success was necessary for Julia's, even if she had left him in the dust by the early '90s. What he did for Emma, however, is anyone's guess.

What we do know is that his daughter told Allure that she credited her auntie Julia as being the real reason she entered the business. The "Scream 4" star recalled how she was captivated watching her aunt work on the set of "Erin Brockovich" — so much so that she didn't want to leave. "I remember it feeling like summer camp," she explained, "just the feeling of creativity." 

Though her career was thriving, Emma Roberts sadly also had her own personal troubles to deal with too. In 2013, Roberts was arrested due to a violent altercation between herself and boyfriend Evan Peters. TMZ reported that the incident took place in the couple's hotel room in Montreal, with Peters allegedly displaying "obvious physical injuries" following the apparent altercation.

Emma was released just hours later as her boyfriend didn't want to press charges. Furthermore, a source confirmed to US Weekly that the couple remained on solid ground and that "they will not break up" because of the fight, which a rep described as a "misunderstanding." Regardless, the encounter became instant bait for tabloid gossip, with Daily News gawping at the bandaged wrist and "constellation of bruises" that Emma sported on her body following the fracas. There was also the widely circulated image of the distraught-looking star crying in Peter's arms after the news of her arrest broke — because people are vultures (via Daily News).

Luckily for Emma, her father was a man with his own experience of having "everything stupid in my life ... blown up into huge headlines" (via SFGate) and Eric Roberts subsequently leaped to his daughter's defense. "Here's the thing about couples," he told TMZ, "Unless you're one of those people, you do not know what happened. It's their business ... they're grown-ups." Message received. 

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

The course of true love never did run smoothly for "American Horror Story"'s hottest couple, with the relationship between Emma Roberts and Evan Peters remaining on and off for years. The two started dating in 2012, got engaged in 2014, and had reportedly ended their engagement by 2015 (via PopSugar). Just a year later, the two were apparently giving each other a second chance with US Weekly reporting that they were dating once again. 

It's unclear as to what status their relationship may have been in a year later when tabloids began to speculate that Roberts was a central factor in the breakup between Hayden Christensen and "The O.C." alum Rachel Bilson. According to US Weekly, Bilsen reportedly found text messages between her beau and his "Little Italy" co-star which led her to conclude that the two "were having an inappropriate relationship." As Perez Hilton questioned the timing of Roberts' alleged involvement with Christensen, it's "unclear" whether herself and Peters were "still together during that debacle — because they certainly were afterward."

They certainly were! Right up until 2019, in fact (via People). However, following their split, speculation was rife that the two didn't exactly have the healthiest or most stable of relationships. An "insider" reportedly told US Weekly that the couple's love affair "became very toxic" and that the two "had the highest highs and then would not speak for days." 

Alleged domestic dispute and affair rumors aside, there were further rumblings that Emma Roberts and Evan Peters' relationship was unstable, to such a degree they were rumored to be difficult to work with. In 2015, OK! published a report from an "American Horror Story" on-set "source" who alleged that the couple was basically a romantic horror story who was driving the "cast insane" with their cycle of fighting and smooching. "As soon as the director yells, 'Cut,' Emma and Evan are making out," the source told the publication, "That is, if they're not screaming at each other."

Their relationship might have had a sour impact on-set, but is it possible their breakup likewise left the "American Horror Story" set in a sour state too? Peters notoriously left the hit show not long after his breakup with Roberts, despite being a fan favorite of the cast's core stars. The actor confirmed he was to skip his first season of the horror anthology in nine years since the show started during a 2019 interview with Wondercon. In reality, Peters wound up sitting out two subsequent seasons of the show in total — "1989" and "Apocalypse" — both of which happened to star his ex.

Skip ahead to 2020, and the roles were reversed. While Peters confirmed he was set to return to "American Horror Story" for "Double Feature," Roberts was now due to sit this one out (via Cinema Blend). Coincidence?

If her aunt's similarly shady romantic history is anything to go by, then maybe Emma Roberts simply had romantic drama in her blood? Julia Roberts suggested she was anything but "America's Sweetheart" when she generated headlines for her relationship with married cinematographer Danny Moder in 2000. The two met on the set of the critically panned crime drama "The Mexican" and had reportedly shacked up together six months later — much to the understandable chagrin of Moder's wife Vera Steimberg who was reportedly reluctant to give her blessing to a divorce (via MSN).

Julia's answer? She wore a t-shirt bearing the brazen handmade slogan "A low Vera" in reference to her beau's wife and rocked it in the middle of Beverly Hills in prime sight of paparazzi. It was shadier than a palm tree. However, Julia maintained that she didn't cause the breakup of her partner's marriage while in conversation with Oprah, and shared that the intent of her fashion statement was "private," and not something she regretted. "I stand by my t-shirt," she said.

Over time, the "Pretty Woman" star must have reflected on her prior behavior, as she told Harper's Bazaar that she was "a selfish little brat" back then who only prioritized herself. More importantly — and perhaps, surprisingly — the couple remain together, and have been married since tying the knot in 2002 at a secret midnight ceremony in Julia's New Mexico ranch (via Entertainment Weekly). 

In 1991, tabloids threw every column inch they had to spare into the mysterious fallout of Hollywood's most beloved couple: Kiefer Sutherland and Julia Roberts. The "Mystic Pizza" superstar had left her "The Lost Boys" husband-to-be just days before their wedding — and shadier still, she appeared to have left him for Sutherland's friend and "The Lost Boys" co-star Jason Patric.

People reported that the couple had been experiencing problems in the leading-up to the wedding, with Sutherland's penchant for heavy drinking coupled with an alleged dalliance with a go-go dancer suggested as being at the heart of the issue. Meanwhile, Roberts and Patric were said to have ensconced to Dublin together, whilst Sutherland had the heartbreak of not being "the first to know he'd been de-groomed" as a source suggested to People that he found out he'd been "dumped" from a mutual friend over the phone.

It was the end of a love affair, sure, but it was also the end of a friendship — something that Patric and Sutherland reflected on 30 years later via the podcast "Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum." Sutherland joked that he was more cut up about losing his pal — who he didn't speak to for about 20 years — than he was his wife-to-be but also suggested that "there's nothing you can do about" falling in love with somebody. Patric, meanwhile, offered a heartwarming appraisal of what survived the drama, "me and Keifer as 35-year buddies." Aw.

Ditching your groom for his bestie days before your wedding would prove to be a distraction for just about anyone, and according to speculation at the time, the tabloid-beloved love triangle also impacted Julia Roberts' work, too. The star had just started filming Steven Spielberg's "Hook" when her romantic life publicly imploded, and the legendary filmmaker was not impressed with her subsequent work ethic or attitude.

A Premiere magazine report about the film's production described Roberts as being a "curious presence" on set who was "sometimes at the near edge of hysteria" — to such a degree that the star was dubbed "Tinkerhell" by the crew (via Den of Geek). Discussing Roberts on "60 Minutes," Spielberg mused that the actor was going through a tough time and that it was subsequently, "an unfortunate time for us to work together." When asked if he'd work with her again, the director hinted that he would not.

Understandably, Roberts wasn't too thrilled to discover that she'd earned herself the unflattering nickname on-set and also defended her behavior telling Entertainment Weekly, "I have normal frustrations like everybody else, but I don't consider myself temperamental." Worse still, she was horrified by Spielberg's comments about her on "60 Minutes" and shared her sense of betrayal to Vanity Fair, "I couldn't believe that this person that I knew and trusted was actually hesitating to come to my defense," she said.