In the movie “The Pelican Affair”, Julia Roberts plays a law student who investigates a series of mysterious murders alongside a brilliant journalist played by Denzel Washington. The actress recalled in 2015 a piece of advice given to her by her on-screen partner that shaped the rest of her career.
The Pelican Affair: from novel to film
In March 1994, released on our screens The Pelican Affaira thriller directed by Alan J. Pakula adapted from the eponymous novel by John Grisham published in 1992. In the casting, we find Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington.
The plot follows young law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) who develops a theory regarding a series of murders of several magistrates alongside his teacher and lover Thomas Callahan (Sam Shepard). The file called “The Pelican Affair” is transmitted to the FBI via a friend of the latter and goes back to the White House. Then Thomas Callahan is assassinated in turn and the life of Darby Shaw is in danger. The latter then comes into contact with a journalist from a major daily (Denzel Washington) who is also investigating the assassinations. Together, they will try to bring this affair to light.
Unforgettable advice
The Pelican Affair to date marks the only collaboration between Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington. Whereas the author of the novel John Grisham didn’t want it to be Denzel Washington playing the role of Gray Grantham, it’s Julia Roberts who insisted that he be hired:
I pushed his name from the start of the project and he did something extraordinary with this character who didn’t look like much in the novel
she said (via Newsweek).
The two actors have since developed a real friendship. In 2015, Julia Roberts had revealed in an interview given to ABC that Denzel Washington had given him advice on the filming of The Pelican Affair that she never forgot. Even bettershe said that this advice shaped the way she later handled her acting career:
A long time ago, I shot The Pelican Affair with my beloved friend and one of the most talented artists I’ve worked with, Denzel Washington, and there was a scene that I didn’t know how to shoot. . It’s a scene where I literally collapse, and in which he tries to support me as he can. We rehearsed this scene and I was told that the camera was going to be moved away, that we would hardly be seen. But when it came time to shoot it, the camera was finally quite close, and I panicked. I asked Denzel for help and he just said “you have to play”. And that’s what I did. And that advice shaped the rest of my career. No matter what I’m going through, or what I’m going through, it’s not supposed to affect my work. I just have to play.
