Julia Roberts is staying away from the spotlight as continues to mourn the death of her half-sister. The actress was absent from the Paris premiere of her new film, August: Osage County on Thursday evening — but her co-star Meryl Streep was there to hold the fort.
Both ladies have received Oscar nominations for their roles in the drama, in which they play mother and daughter.
Meryl, 64, looked typically elegant in a black and white striped dress as she hit the red carpet alongside the film's director John Wells. The beloved actress clearly has a loyal legion of French fans; she was presented with a miniature Academy Award and a bunch of flowers in anticipation of the 2 March ceremony.
Earlier this week, Julia, 46, skipped the Academy Awards luncheon as she came to terms with her loss. The event, which was attended by fellow nominees including Leonardo DiCaprio and Sandra Bullock, took place on the same day that Julia and her family issued a statement confirming her sister's death.
"It is with deep sadness that the family of Nancy Motes… confirms that she was found dead in Los Angeles yesterday of an apparent drug overdose," it read. "There is no official report from the Coroner's office yet. The family are shocked and devastated. "Julia and Nancy had the same mother, Betty Lou, but different fathers; Julia is the daughter of the late Walter Grady Roberts, and Nancy's father is Michael Motes.
The two sisters had a complex relationship; they were very close growing up but in the days leading up to her death, Nancy rallied against Julia in a series of furious tweets.
"Julia tried in vain over the years, even in the last six months, to get Nancy to rehab," a source told Radar Online.
"Nancy refused the offers and that is when she would often publicly lash out at Julia. "It hurt Julia, but she knew her sister was battling addiction."
The addiction to prescription drugs made Nancy a totally different person. There would be periods of sobriety and that brought clarity. It would be during those moments that the sisters would reconnect. Sadly, of course, those times became less frequent before her death."