Julia Roberts left  'speechless' for Wonder role

Julia Roberts says "she's speechless" about the character behind her latest role in Wonder - the mother of a boy with a rare congenital condition that has affected the way his face is formed.

The film, out on Friday, is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by R J Palacio, and follows Auggie's journey as he takes the difficult step of his first year at school, BBC News reports.

"For me, when I read the book, I thought it was so special, so incredible the way she had crafted the story about this family, and that's really a story about all of us," said Roberts.

Roberts's character, Isabel Pullman, home educates Auggie - played by 11-year-old Jacob Tremblay - until he is 10 before deciding to send him to school.


"I think, for me, the one thing in Isabel that really just left me speechless was her ability as a parent to spend every minute of 10 years with this incredible boy, and wake up one day and know that against all of her mama bear instinct that the right thing to do was to send him out into the world.

"To know that he was a good and funny, sweet, capable boy and could find his way in the world. And that is what he needed to do regardless of her wanting to keep him home wrapped up in cotton balls.

"That all of her weepy desire to stay close was not as important and valuable as her knowledge that he needed to be in the world."

Tremblay, who had to wear extensive make-up for the role which took two hours to apply every day, is best-known for playing Brie Larson's son in Room, the film which won her a best actress Oscar in 2016.