How Julia Roberts and George Clooney Managed to Keep Their Friendship Strong for 22 Years

Julia Roberts and George Clooney are not “Hollywood friends,” they actually really like and respect one another. Throughout their 22-year-long friendship, they starred in 6 movies together, and this didn’t only impact their professional careers — they’ve played significant roles in each other’s personal lives as well.

Julia Roberts and George Clooney met in 2000 when they worked for the first time together on Ocean’s Eleven.

When Roberts met Clooney, she assumed he’d be a pal, and she was right. The minute the co-stars met, they instantly started to have fun and enjoyed working together. “The beauty is when you work with people who take their work seriously and don’t take themselves seriously, and that’s really fun,” Clooney said as he recalled how he felt the first time he met the actress.

Throughout their friendship, they’ve witnessed each other’s sweetest milestones and helped each other in the process.

Finding life partners, expecting babies, and raising children are only a few of the life events that Clooney and Roberts have experienced together. And as their families grew over the years, they just stitched their lives even closer together.

Clooney always made sure that Roberts was feeling okay when she was pregnant and treated her with more softness than he did before. “It was such a sweet shift in our relationships because originally, it was all pranks and teasing each other,” Roberts revealed. She also enjoys the company of Clooney’s wife, Amal, and what matters the most to her is that Clooney is happy with her.

Clooney and his family saved Roberts from complete loneliness and despair.

When Roberts worked on a project far away from her family, Clooney, his wife, and their 5-year-old twins kept her company. She had a house down just below Clooney’s family and they would bring her a cup of coffee every morning.

“We were in a bubble,” revealed Roberts. “It’s the longest I’ve ever been away from my family. I don’t think I’ve spent that much time by myself since I was 25. The Clooneys saved me from complete loneliness and despair.”

They believe they’re such good friends because they have a similar approach to life.

“I think we enjoy the same things. We love the work, but we don’t make the work our entire life,” said Clooney. “It makes going to work really fun. It’s very easy for us.”

He also revealed that Roberts remains as generous a friend as she was when they met 22 years ago. She is consistent in her friendship, kindness, and loyalty, and the only change they are experiencing in their friendship is that they’re getting older. “We are the same goofy nuts we’ve always been,” Roberts added.

Roberts’ speech when she presented Clooney with the Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award is just another example of how strong and real their friendship is.

“George Clooney, or as my daughter calls him, ’George Looney.’ So, so honored to be here tonight. We have worked together in many capacities. We have acted together a few times. He’s been my producer and my director, all of which he is immeasurably gifted at. He’s handsome, he’s talented, he is an exemplary humanitarian and a gifted prankster,” gushed Roberts at the award ceremony.

Roberts’ speech didn’t leave Clooney indifferent, and he was ready to pay back the compliments. “It has been such a pleasure to watch the woman you have become. An amazing mother, an amazing wife, and a great, great friend. It’s really an honor to have her here.”

Do you think George Clooney and Julia Roberts will still be friends 22 years from now?