Julia Roberts’ mother, Betty Lou Motes, has died at the age of 80. She passed away early Thursday morning in Los Angeles after a battle with lung cancer.
Born Betty Lou Bredemus, she once ran an acting school in Smyrna, Ga., where Julia was born and raised. She was the mother of four children in all:
Eric Roberts, 58, and Julia, 47; Lisa Gillan, 49, and Nancy Motes, who died last year at age 37 in an apparent suicide Julia described as "heartbreaking."
She was also the grandmother of actress Emma Roberts, Eric’s daughter, along with Julia’s children, twins Phinnaeus and Hazel, both 10, and Henry, 7.
Julia opened up about how she first realized she was a celebrity when she went to go see a film with her mom shortly after starring in 1998’s Mystic Pizza.
"The first time I felt famous was when I went to the movies with my mom," Julia said in 2002, when someone recognized the actress from her breakout role.
Julia Roberts has been in Los Angeles filming her new movie The Secret In Their Eyes and has not yet commented publicly on her mother’s passing.
We wish her and the rest of her family the best in this sad time.