Once upon a time, Julia Roberts and Kiefer Sutherland were Hollywood’s “it couple.” In the early 90s, Roberts’ star was burning bright fresh off her performance as the hooker with a heart of gold in the smash hit Pretty Woman. Sutherland was already an established A-lister, both as the son of Hollywood legend Donald Sutherland and for his starring roles in The Lost Boys, Stand By Me, and Young Guns.
For some reason, the Mirror has decided this week to revisit Roberts and Sutherland’s ill-fated relationship that ended with a dramatic breakup, with Roberts calling off the wedding just days before it was to take place. This is, indeed, a rare occasion when Gossip Cop can confirm a tabloid report.
(Columbia Pictures)
How Roberts And Sutherland Started
In 1990, the two starred together in Flatliners and soon a romance blossomed. For two years, the couple dated and eventually got engaged. At the time, Kiefer Sutherland was 24-years-old and Julia Roberts just 23. It was, by Sutherland’s account, a fairly rocky relationship. The 24 star has admitted he was struggling with addiction at the time and because they were both young and in love, he was blinded from realities of life and a relationship.
The relationship definitely got messy, with Sutherland moving out just weeks before their planned nuptials. Then, just three days before the wedding was planned to take place, Julia Roberts called it off amid infidelity rumors that Sutherland was seeing a stripper, something Sutherland has denied. Still, Sutherland takes the blame for the breakup and admits Roberts did the right thing, telling People magazine, via AOL, in 2016, “I think it took a lot of courage, even amongst all of that other stuff, to be able to say, ‘I can’t do this.'”
Things Got More Dramatic On Their Planned Wedding Day
After Sutherland had moved out, Roberts started hanging out with one of Sutherland’s good friends, his Lost Boys co-star Jason Patric. Instead of walking down the aisle, Roberts walked onto a plane with Patric and the two jetted off to Ireland, making no secret of their relationship.
While it must have been heartbreaking for Sutherland, he holds no grudges, saying “I think she was being realistic for herself,” adding that he realized later they were both probably too young for such an intense relationship. As for Jason Patric, his relationship with Roberts didn’t last long, and two years later, Roberts married singer Lyle Lovett, though the marriage only last about nine months.
(People)
What The Tabloids Usually Say About Roberts
Julia Roberts later married cinematographer Danny Moder and, frankly, the tabloids have been relentless ever since. Though the couple recently celebrated 20 years together, with Roberts marking the occasion on Instagram, but to believe the tabloids, you’d think they’ve been on verge of divorce the entire time.
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The tabloids have even brought Jason Patric into the contrived drama. Last October, Gossip Cop busted NW for alleging Roberts had been “leaning on” Patric amid marriage problems. When we read the story, we immediately reached out to Jason Patric’s spokesperson who condemned the story, telling us in no uncertain terms that the article was,
completely inaccurate as well as offensive to Jason Patric and to the relationship of Julia Roberts and Danny Moder. We categorically deny this absurd and offensive story.
Sutherland Today
While Julia Roberts marriage to Danny Moder is as strong as ever, so is Kiefer Sutherland’s relationship with actress Cindy Vela, whom Sutherland has been dating for six years. Sutherland even appeared in a remake of Flatliners in 2017, albeit playing a different character from the original, where it all started with Julia Roberts.