13 Memorable Julia Roberts Rom-Com Characters, Ranked By Likability

If there were a Mount Rushmore of rom-com actresses, Julia Roberts would certainly be on it. But which roles shine and which of them fall flat in the likability department? Here are 13 Julia Roberts characters, ranked from worst to best. 

13. Julianne Potter, 'My Best Friend's Wedding'

Realizing you're in love with your best friend and then doing everything you possibly can to sabotage his wedding is completely unacceptable. How anyone forgives this immature food critic monster is beyond me. She set feminism back like 20 years. Julianne Potter is a life ruiner who needs to get her morals in check. 

12. Maggie Carpenter, 'Runaway Bride'

Call us old fashioned, but a history of leaving men at the altar is not cute or quirky! We don't want to wed-shame ole Maggie since her anxieties and actions probably deserve therapeutic attention, but she's putting these men through a lot because of her own deep-seeded fears and false ideals. We hope she's happy.

11. Liz Gilbert, 'Eat, Pray, Love'

This woman is the human embodiment of the Alanis Morissette song "Thank U." "Thank you India. Thank you terror. Thank you disillusionment." We get it, ladies. You once were lost, and now you're found because you have a passport and a disposable income. We're sensitive to her struggles with the burdens of life and all its expectations, but she's not exactly the most relatable, even if we all would like to drink wine and eat bowls of bolognese at noon every day. 

10. Grace King Bichon, 'Something to Talk About'

We have tons of sympathy for a woman scorned, but the fact Grace poisons her philandering husband (Dennis Quaid) isn't the most redeeming action. (She doesn't kill him or anything, guys.) Grace could use a spurt of Southern charm like her movie sister played by Kyra Sedgwick, because we always get a little bored when Julia's on screen in this one. And she's the main character... 

9. Sabrina Peterson, 'I Love Trouble'

Remember the one about a pair of rival reporters who butt heads while pursuing the same big story but actually they love each other which was very obvious from the beginning? Roberts' overzealous journalist Sabrina is just too stiff to make this 1994 dud the fun screwball throwback it should be. Where's her chemistry with Nolte? We just don't see it. 

8. Samantha, 'The Mexican'

You make a movie with the biggest stars on the planet, you wanna see them interact. That's not to stay Roberts needs Brad Pitt to shine in any way, but it would have been nice in a road trip romp like this. Sam's got chutzpah and opinions and energy and a fiery funky bob, but she's not a very memorable lead. 

7. Von Sidell, 'Everyone Says I Love You'

Dreamy, dis-satisfied Von's passion for Tintoretto's brush strokes and love of Bora Bora is all well and good, but we don't really get to know her beyond her intellectual interests and her talk of an unhappy marriage. It's not her fault that Woody Allen's Joe dupes her into thinking he's her soulmate, though. 

6. Anna Scott, 'Notting Hill'

A-list movie star Anna Scott may be just a girl standing in front of a boy asking to love her, but her quest to come off humble and cool as a cucumber all at the same time just seems like this actress is doing what she knows best -- acting. But she and William are pretty sweet together, and the fact that she goes for him gives her some humility points. And you can't deny that Julia Roberts magic. 

5. Mercedes Tainot, 'Larry Crowne'

Speech professor Mercedes might be bitter and burnt out, but leave it to a plucky and good-hearted Hanks to bring out the best in her. "Mercy" is good egg weighed down by crappy circumstances, but she lacks depth, and to be honest, we totally forgot this movie existed anyway. 

4. Kiki Harrison, 'America's Sweethearts'

You can't hate on a female character who was supposed to be overweight and unattractive at one point in her life -- it's just one of the laws of rom-coms. And once you've seen them in their fat suit, all bets are off. Sympathy points! Kiki is the pushed-around assistant to her mega-star sister Gwen (Catherine Zeta-Jones), and more than half of her charm comes from the fact that she is NOT Gwen, who is a selfish, vain diva. Kiki has her hair up, wears drab sweaters, and is a nice, unglamorous person. In rom-com world, she's a hero. 

3. Kate Hazeltine, 'Valentine's Day'

Julia's part in this "holiday" ensemble is short, but just sweet enough to not deduct any likability points! She's a Captain in the U.S. army, guys. And she's on leave for one day only, which is just enough time to inject some signature charm into Bradley Cooper's life and see her young song. Aww. No complaints here. 

2. Daisy Arujo, 'Mystic Pizza'

Daisy is the epitome of the '80s cool girl, but not in a "Heathers" or "Valley Girl" way. She's got a flawed realness and an effortless small-town magnetism that makes her mysterious and approachable all at once. And she makes a mean pizza pie!  No wonder Roberts got noticed here. She nails it. 

1. Vivian Ward, 'Pretty Woman'

Vivian Ward is everyone's favorite hooker with a heart of gold. She's independent, but vulnerable. She's witty, yet she has a lot to learn. She's strong, but she wants the fairy tale! She calls escargot "slippery little suckers" and she loved the opera so much that she almost peed her pants. Who doesn't fall in love with Vivian a little bit every time they watch "Pretty Woman"?