Eric Roberts Bio
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor widely recognized as one of the most prolific English-speaking screen performers of his generation. He has amassed more than 700 credits across film and television, including 74 films in 2017 alone, a pace that places him among the most hardworking actors in the industry. Over a career spanning more than five decades, he has earned three Golden Globe Award nominations and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Roberts first drew widespread acclaim for his leading role in King of the Gypsies (1978) and went on to deliver memorable performances in Star 80 (1983) and Runaway Train (1985), the latter earning him his Academy Award nod. Beyond his work in major studio releases, he has built an extraordinary filmography of independent features, direct-to-video productions, and television appearances that reflect both his range and his dedication to the craft of acting.
Early Life and Background
Eric Anthony Roberts was born in Biloxi, Mississippi, on April 18, 1956, to Betty Lou Bredemus and Walter Grady Roberts, both one-time actors and playwrights who met while touring with a production of George Washington Slept Here for the armed forces. In 1963, his parents co-founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop off Juniper Street in Midtown, and they also ran a children’s acting school in Decatur, Georgia. Growing up in a creative household, Roberts was exposed to performance and storytelling from a young age, with his parents encouraging his interest in the arts.
Following his parents’ divorce, finalized in early 1972, Roberts stayed with his father in Atlanta, while his younger sisters, Julia Roberts and Lisa Roberts Gillan, moved with their mother to Smyrna, a suburb of Atlanta. His father died of cancer in March 1977, a personal loss that shaped Roberts in his late teens. His sister Julia Roberts later became an internationally celebrated actress, though the two were estranged for several years before reconciling in 2004 after the birth of her twins.
Roberts’s formative years in Atlanta, immersed in the workshop culture his parents had created, gave him an early foundation in acting technique. By the time he reached his late teens, he was prepared to pursue performance professionally, eventually leaving Atlanta to begin his career in New York.
Path to Acting
Roberts made his professional acting debut in 1974, appearing on the soap opera How to Survive a Marriage. He continued working in daytime television with a role on the NBC soap opera Another World, where he originated the role of Ted Bancroft from February 14 to June 17, 1977. These early television appearances gave him steady on-screen experience and helped him refine his craft before transitioning to film.
His breakout opportunity came with the leading role in King of the Gypsies (1978), a performance that earned him his first Golden Globe Award nomination and announced him as a serious dramatic talent. He followed this with notable early roles in Paul’s Case (1980) and Raggedy Man (1981), building a reputation for intense, committed performances. His role as Paul Snider in Bob Fosse’s Star 80 (1983) brought a second Golden Globe nomination and further critical attention.
Eric Roberts Career
Early Career (1974-1983)
Roberts began his career on television in 1974 with a role on How to Survive a Marriage and later on Another World, where he played Ted Bancroft in 1977. These early soap opera credits gave him consistent work and a chance to develop his screen presence. By the end of the decade, he had positioned himself for his first major film role in King of the Gypsies (1978), which earned him a Golden Globe nomination and established his dramatic credentials.
Throughout the early 1980s, Roberts continued to build his filmography with projects including Raggedy Man (1981) and a Golden Globe-nominated turn in Star 80 (1983). In 1981, he was involved in a serious car accident that left him in a coma for three days, but he recovered and returned to acting. In 1987, he made his Broadway debut in Burn This, a performance that earned him the Theatre World Award.
Breakthrough (1984-1999)
Roberts’s most celebrated stretch began with The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984), a well-received crime drama co-starring Mickey Rourke. The following year, he played prison escapee Buck McGeehy in Runaway Train (1985), a performance that earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, a third Golden Globe nomination, and widespread critical praise.
He continued delivering leading performances in films such as The Coca-Cola Kid (1985), Nobody’s Fool (1986), and Best of the Best (1989). Additional highlights of the decade and the 1990s included By the Sword (1991), Final Analysis (1992), Best of the Best 2 (1993), The Specialist (1994), and The Immortals (1995). He also appeared in It’s My Party (1996), La Cucaracha (1998), and Purgatory (1999), and he was the only non-UK actor to play the Master in the 1996 Doctor Who television film, with his wife Eliza Garrett appearing as the Master’s victim.
On television, he starred in the C-16 series for its entire 1997 to 1998 run, and earned a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film for his role as Perry Smith in In Cold Blood (1996). He also appeared in voice roles in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, voicing the villain Mongul, and in Nickelodeon’s Danny Phantom as Dark Danny.
Notable Works and Milestones
Roberts’s signature work includes his Oscar-nominated performance in Runaway Train (1985), which remains his most defining role. His Theatre World Award-winning Broadway debut in Burn This (1987) and his Golden Globe-nominated performances in King of the Gypsies and Star 80 mark major career milestones. His enduring presence across genres, from major studio films to independent productions, has cemented his reputation as a versatile and prolific actor.
Eric Roberts Award Nominations
Eric Roberts has earned a series of prestigious nominations throughout his career, beginning with a Golden Globe Award nomination for his leading role in King of the Gypsies (1978). He received a second Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of Paul Snider in Bob Fosse’s Star 80 (1983), and a third Golden Globe nomination, alongside an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, for his role as Buck McGeehy in Runaway Train (1985). He earned a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film for In Cold Blood (1996), and a Satellite Award nomination for his work on the sitcom Less than Perfect (2002-2005).
Eric Roberts Awards Won
Roberts won the Theatre World Award in 1987 for his Broadway debut performance in Burn This, a recognition that highlighted his successful transition from screen to stage. He also won a Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role on Less than Perfect (2002-2005). The Nigerian comedy drama A Trip to Jamaica, in which Roberts starred, won the Africa Entertainment Legends Award for Best Cinema Film of 2016.
Eric Roberts Family
Roberts’s parents, Walter Grady Roberts and Betty Lou Bredemus, were one-time actors and playwrights who founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop in 1963. He has two younger sisters who are also actors, Julia Roberts and Lisa Roberts Gillan. His half-sister Nancy Motes, born in 1976, died in February 2014 at age 37 from an apparent drug overdose. He is a distant cousin of fellow actor Edward Norton.
Personal Life
Roberts was in a long-term relationship with actress Sandy Dennis from 1980 to 1985, and later had a relationship with Kelly Cunningham from 1988 to 1991, with whom he has a daughter, Emma Roberts, born February 10, 1991, who became an actress in her own right. He married Eliza Garrett, daughter of screenwriters David Rayfiel and Lila Garrett, in 1992. His stepson, Keaton Simons, is a singer-songwriter, and his stepdaughter, Morgan Simons, is a chef. He became a grandfather in December 2020 when Emma Roberts and actor Garrett Hedlund welcomed a son named Rhodes.
