Starring in multiple films together has bred a genuine friendship between Julia Roberts and George Clooney. Clooney’s the reason Roberts returned to romantic comedies with Ticket to Paradise after she stopped doing them years ago. The true sign of a meaningful friendship though is giving out nicknames. It appeared the two movie stars have reached that level as Roberts revealed the nickname she has her Ticket to Paradise co-star under in her phone contacts.
The Hollywood A-lister opened up about the surprising nickname while speaking with ReelBlend podcast co-host Jake Hamilton to promote the rom-com. The onscreen duo fielded questions about the movie before it turned to their decades-long friendship. They spoke about everything from drunk moments together to pitching movies from their extensive filmographies they could’ve starred in together. The conversation turned to a particular moment in the rom-com involving mobile phones. This prompted Roberts to mention what nickname Clooney is saved in her phone. She said:
There’s no picture, but George is in my phone under codename ‘Batman Cell.’ … Now, I have to change it.
If you’re a real Clooney fan, you know the codename was a nice friendly jab at the Oscar winner’s expense. Of course, the 61-year-old actor starred in the ill-fated 1997 sequel Batman and Robin as the Dark Knight. The film was seen as the demise of the Batman franchise at the time. Even, the movie star hasn’t shied away from saying the superhero film was terrible.
But when you are friends like Clooney and Roberts are, you can do goofy things like this without any fallout, like joking about Roberts’ iconic laugh, for example. He took it in jest as he was asked if there was a codename for his co-star. Of course, the Ticket to Paradise star cheekily responded with a classic from Robert’s film resume.
And mine’s ‘Pretty Woman’ … it’s not, but I just tried. I’m literally lying about that. I don’t put ‘Julia Roberts’ because if my phone gets picked up then all hell breaks loose. … I think it’s just ‘JR’ or something like that.
Well, Clooney’s answer was a little anticlimactic. It would’ve been great if he had saved her under the beloved film. At least, he was in on the fun. But just like Roberts, he’s probably going to need to change her phone codename just in case his phone falls into the wrong hands.
In the duo’s latest film they play divorced couple Georgia and David Cotton. The onscreen couple (or in this case ex-couple) travel to Bali to stop their daughter from marrying a man she just met, like they did decades earlier. Along with the two Hollywood A-listers, Kaitlyn Dever and Billie Lourd are part of the upcoming rom-com cast.
Viewers will finally get to see Julia Roberts and George Clooney back together when Ticket to Paradise arrives in movie theaters on October 21. Before seeing the romantic comedy, watch some of Roberts’ best rom-coms. Look at our 2022 movie schedule to see what other upcoming movies will premiere in 2022.