Julia Roberts Reveals She and Husband Danny Moder Were 'Strict' Parents

Julia Roberts shared some sage parenting advice with friend and fellow actor George Clooney — and it gives a rare glimpse into her life as a mom.

Us Weekly has the exclusive first look at Roberts’ interview with Clooney, 64, in Edward and Akua Enninful‘s new print title, 72 Magazine, in which she discusses how she and husband Danny Moder parented their three children, twins Hazel and Phinnaeus, 20, and son Henry, 18.

Roberts, 57, admitted that they were considered some of the “stricter parents” in their community while their kids were growing up. Her comment came after Clooney — who shares 8-year-old twins, Alexander and Ella, with wife Amal Clooney — asked Roberts how she managed internet use and screen time when her children were younger.

“I don’t know how to do it,” Clooney said of maintaining her social media presence. “I’m not on any of them, but only because I find that my life is so much simpler without doing it. But I worry about kids. I worry about my kids, obviously. And I was wondering if you worry about that, which is the value system,” he added.

Clooney went on to say that when he was 12 years old and made a mistake, it wouldn’t “follow [him] to college or [his] career,” the way it does nowadays on the internet.

“And so the risks are so much bigger and the consequences follow you for so much longer,” he continued. “I’m worried about my kids; we keep them off the internet as much as we can. But, you know, some of their homework is done on a computer. And they do like to watch a good Snoopy movie and things like that. But I wonder what your version of it is. Did you limit their access to it or did you just talk it through?”

Roberts replied, “I think they were, for sure, some of the last kids in their peer groups to get phones and stuff like that. When they were younger, certainly, Danny and I would have been considered some of the stricter parents. Not like we’re laying down the law, but these are the rules and they don’t change. Here’s the boundary of your life and it does not shift. You know, you don’t ask me and get an answer and then go ask dad and get a different answer. That doesn’t happen. It will never happen.”

She concluded, “I think that is what creates the stability that then allows them to feel secure because you know there is this fixed world of love and safety that exists unconditionally.”

Roberts has been open about raising her kids in the smartphone era, telling Today in 2023 that she and Moder, 56, followed “simple rules” like leaving devices at a “charging station” at home and “no phones at the table, certainly.”

But she, of course, allowed her children to use technology when necessary.

“I parent them the same way out of the house that I parented them in the house, which is, you know, ‘Are you getting enough sleep?’ And, ‘You sound like you’re sick.’ And, ‘Are you drinking tea?’ And, ‘Text me when you get home (so) I can see that you’re home safe and sound,” she explained, noting that the family FaceTimes each other when they’re apart.

“And I have an immense amount of appreciation for both of my older kids because they still allow me to be the same mom to them,” she said, “and it’s not eye-rolling and there’s a huge amount of understanding.”

Elsewhere in their 72 Magazine interview, Roberts and Clooney discussed the pressure to instill “values” in their kids, especially in light of their careers and celebrity statuses.

“You and I have talked about this a lot,” Roberts told Clooney, who mentioned his son recently asked him what “famous” meant. “You know, we all want our kids to grow up with values. This is what we want as parents. I think part of it is just Danny and I are definitely aligned in our core values and always have been. And I think when kids are little, kids only know what you let them know. I can’t even tell you how old my kids probably were when they really understood my place in a work world.”

Clooney commended Roberts as a wonderful mom who should be proud of raising “such great kids.”

“It’s just so much fun watching them around you,” he added. “They’ve got your back. You’ve got their back.”

Roberts is currently taking a step back into the spotlight in Luca Guadagnino’s new film After the Hunt, which centers on a college professor (Roberts) who finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when her star student (Ayo Edebiri) levels an accusation against one of her colleagues (Andrew Garfield), threatening to expose a dark secret from her own past.

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month and hits theaters on October 10.

The timing couldn’t be better as Roberts stars on the cover of 72 Magazine’s debut issue, which launches on September 12, powered by the digital EE72 platform. The magazine converges global fashion, beauty, luxury and culture, ushering in a bold new chapter in storytelling and marking a groundbreaking shift across the media industry.

Roberts was the perfect person to usher in “the start of an exciting chapter,” the editorial director of 72 Magazine, Sarah Harris, said in a press release.

“Julia Roberts has always been a defining presence in our cultural landscape; refusing to be pinned down to any single moment, or role,” Harris shared. “She constantly evolves but stays true to herself. She reflects the kind of modern woman 72 Magazine celebrates: unfiltered, authentic, and timeless.”