Eric Roberts Issues Public Apology to Sister Julia Roberts Amid Strained Relationship

The 68-year-old is reflecting on ups and downs he’s had in his career and his life in his new memoir, Runaway Train: Or the Story of My Life So Far, and how it impacted his relationships with his famous sister, Julia Roberts, and his daughter Emma Roberts.

Eric previously made headlines in 2018 for opening up about his estrangement from his sister while he was struggling with drug and alcohol abuse.

“If it wasn’t for me, there would be no Julia Roberts and no Emma Roberts as celebrities, as actresses, and I’m very proud of that,” he told Vanity Fair, at the time.

While he said in that same interview that he had made up with his sister amid the birth of her twins in 2004, there was a bit of a falling out amongst the family — as much as he tried denying it at the time — and now, with the release of his memoir, Roberts is walking back some of those comments, and asking for forgiveness.

In an excerpt from his book, shared by People, Eric writes, “I hope Julia will accept this public apology. It was an asinine thing to have said.”

He added that his struggles with drugs directly affected his relationship with his family, including their other sister, Lisa Roberts Gillan.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they suffered from PTSD from when it was dangerous to be around me,” he writes. “Lisa and Julia needed love and protection — instead they got fear and uncertainty.”

In addition to his strained relationship with his siblings, Eric wrote that the “biggest consequence” of his addiction was “losing Emma.”

The American Horror Story star is the daughter of Eric and his ex Kelly Cunningham, who broke up when she was a baby. Julia supported Kelly in her custody battle against Eric for Emma. While the actor doesn’t go into detail about the situation in his book, he writes Julia made the right decision at the time.

“I imagine I will remain as Julia’s brother and Emma Roberts’ dad for the rest of my life,” Eric, who is currently competing on Dancing With the Stars writes. “I’d like to make good on that, to move aside proudly and with grace. That’s part of the reason for writing the book.”

Though both Julia and Emma haven’t spoken about their relationship Eric, the 33-year-old actress has made her dad proud.

“I’m in love with my daughter’s work these days,” Eric said during an appearance on Still Here Hollywood in July 2024. “I can’t believe how great she’s become. I’m so proud of her I can’t see straight.”