Notting Hill first hit our screens 25 years ago (Picture: Universal)
Julia Roberts thankfully stopped a devastating sequel to one of her most iconic films from getting off the ground, after being left unimpressed at the plot.
The 57-year-old stole all our hearts with her stint in 1999 flick Notting Hill, where she starred as Hollywood actress Anna Scott, who fell head over heels for Hugh Grant’s bumbling bookshop owner, William Thacker.
Roger Mitchell directed the movie from Richard Curtis’ screenplay, while Hugh Bonneville, Emma Chambers, Rhys Ifans and Gina McKee were also in the cast.
In a new interview, Richard was questioned on whether he would ever want to revisit any of his iconic movies for official sequels or reboots, when he shared that we nearly got a follow-up to the rom-com.
‘I don’t think so. I actually did four Red Nose Days and Comic Relief,’ he told IndieWire. ‘We did those mini sequels to Love Actually and those satisfied me.
‘I tried doing one with Notting Hill where they were going to get divorced and Julia thought that was a very poor idea.’
Julia Roberts starred as Anna Scott in the popular rom-com (Picture: Shutterstock)
Richard Curtis confirmed that she refused to return for a sequel (Picture: Getty)
Julia reflected on her efforts in Notting Hill during a chat with British Vogue alongside the acclaimed writer and filmmaker, and shared that she nearly rejected the role of Anna completely as she found the character ‘so uncomfortable’ to play.
‘Honestly, one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was your movie, playing a movie actress. I was so uncomfortable,’ she told him at the time.
‘I mean, we’ve talked about this so many times, but I almost didn’t take the part because it just seemed – oh, it just seemed so awkward.
‘I didn’t even know how to play that person.’
Despite Julia’s reservations, Notting Hill became an instant classic when it hit the big screen more than two decades ago.
It went on to scoop the audience-voted film of the year award at the Baftas in 2000, while both the leads were nominated in the acting categories at the Golden Globes.
Hugh recently made headlines when he unpacked his take on the fictional William Thacker 25 years on, slating his character as ‘despicable’.
‘Whenever I’m flicking the channels at home after a few drinks and this comes up, I just think, “Why doesn’t my character have any balls?”’ he declared in a Vanity Fair video.
‘There’s a scene in this film where she’s [Anna] in my house, and the paps come to the front door and ring the bell. I think I just let her go past me and open the door. That’s awful.
Hugh Grant slated his character in a recent interview (Picture: Getty)
He played bumbling bookshop owner William Thacker (Picture: Shutterstock)
‘I’ve never had a girlfriend – or indeed now wife – who hasn’t said, “Why the hell didn’t you stop her? What’s wrong with you?” And I don’t really have an answer to that.
‘It’s how it was written. And I think he’s despicable, really.’
Despite his understandable issues, Hugh also took a moment to praise his co-star as ‘brilliant’.
‘Probably all the time with Julia, as with any brilliant actress, you’re just thinking, “Oh Christ, they’re really good. I’m not going to be as good as her,”’ he added.
‘She’s great at emoting, and she’s got that quality where it looks like her skin is wafer thin. You can sort of see her soul.’
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