Eric Roberts

The story of Eric Roberts should have been about one of the best actors of his generation. He trained in New York alongside Walken, Rourke, Malkovich, and Willis. His first big role in King of the Gypsies (1978) earned him a Golden Globe nomination. Then came Star 80 (1983), where he played real-life murderer Paul Snider so relentlessly that he's called the shoot the most miserable of his life. Runaway Train (1985) earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Three Golden Globe nominations before he was 30. Cocaine had different plans.

Once the A-list dried up, he started saying yes to everything. By 2017, he was making 74 films a year, most of them direct-to-video. His wife Eliza manages his schedule and reportedly fields up to 30 offers per day. The math is stark: 809 career credits as of 2026, making him one of the most prolific screen actors alive. He slipped into The Dark Knight for a minor role in 2008, published a memoir called Runaway Train in 2024, and appeared on Dancing with the Stars. He seems to have made entirely too much peace with what his career became.

"Absolutely nothing. Except I gave her that name." That's his take on his contribution to daughter Emma Roberts' acting career. His sister is Julia Roberts. Neither will let him discuss them publicly, and he says he respects that. He lost custody of Emma during his cocaine years, and he and Julia were estranged for about a decade after that. The reconciliation came in 2004 when Julia's twins were born. The whole situation reads like a family that rebuilt something, quietly, and decided not to explain it to anyone.