The Poster Memorabilia blog

The Prettiest Woman I've Ever Seen

An intern, a 25th-anniversary reunion, and the most famous smile in Hollywood up close.

By an anonymous Hollywood insider

The best casting ever in a movie was Julia Roberts as the lead in Pretty Woman. The title called for a beautiful girl, and boy was she stunning. She still is, of course, but in the movie she's out of this world. I've never seen someone more beautiful!

I'm about to sound corny here, but I don't care. Julia Roberts' beauty comes from the inside out. Yes, she was physically stunning, but then again, so were plenty of other actresses at the time. What set her apart was something you can't put on with makeup.

It was her famous smile. It also made her an excellent actress. Every time she smiled, especially in Pretty Woman, everything became brighter. I know that sounds corny, like I said, but I can't help it. I can't describe it any other way.

“Every time she smiled, everything became brighter.”

With her youthful glow, wild curly hair, and beloved smile, she was the quintessential leading lady of the era. It's even easy to forget that she played a sex worker in the movie. The moment she got her elegant makeover, especially when she appeared in that iconic red dress, she looked like a true Hollywood movie star.

Even better, she has kept that glow decades later. When I worked as an intern at NBC, I had the privilege of meeting her and the rest of the Pretty Woman cast for a special interview. The film marked its 25th anniversary, and the TODAY show invited Julia, Richard Gere, Hector Elizondo, Laura San Giacomo, and the late director Garry Marshall for a special reunion.

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I still have fond memories of that day. For an intern, it was the kind of assignment you dream about — the whole cast back together in one room, trading stories about a movie that meant so much to so many people.

What I will talk about is Julia Roberts and just how gorgeous she was in person. She barely looked any different from the movie, just a little bit older. But even with the years, her smile remained as resplendent as ever. I could look at it all day and never get tired of it.

I was happy to discover that behind that famous smile was a genuinely nice person. She was kind to everyone on set, including me, an intern. She wasn't a diva at all, despite having the status to be one, and her laugh was just as contagious in real life as it was in movies and TV.

The rest of the cast were also nice, though slightly more reserved than her. Still, during a bit of free time before the interview started, I worked up the nerve to approach each of them and got them to sign my Pretty Woman movie poster.

They weren't even snobby about it. They simply signed the poster and handed it back as I thanked them. I was nervous they'd think I was being impertinent for going up to them, but they didn't. Some were chattier than others, but all of them were pleasant.

Sometimes, I miss working at a big network like that since it included those kinds of perks. I no longer work in media, but I still got to make incredible memories from that time, especially with the ever-beautiful Julia Roberts.

Some things you watch. This one you keep.

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