Eric Roberts reflects on his role as father to Emma Roberts, claims he 'couldn’t handle being a parent'

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Eric Roberts reflected on the parenting missteps that he made during the formative years of his daughter Emma Roberts. 

The 68-year-old Oscar winner recently wrote his tell-all memoir ‘Runaway Train: Or, the Story of My Life So Far’, where he penned down his candid feelings regarding the mistakes he made in his relationships - especially with his daughter Emma, 33, and his sister Julia Roberts, 56. 

Reminiscing the past, Eric - who is currently seen as a contestant in ‘Dancing With The Stars' - confessed that he “couldn’t handle being a parent” to his daughter when she was growing up.

Eric Roberts opened up about his parenting mistakes

Eric Roberts shares his ‘Scream Queens’ star daughter with his ex Kelly Cunningham. Speaking of the past, Roberts recalled, "I had abandoned Kelly when Emma was just seven months old.”

He admitted that though Kelly saw him at his "absolute worst,” she still stood by him “for a time.”

The ‘King of the Gypsies’ actor wrote, "Yet she stayed, for a time, though I’m sure she questioned whether or not she should.”

"We both wanted a child — maybe I did more than she — but we both wanted to become parents,’ recalled the Oscar-nominated star in his writing. 

Per Huff Post, he also recalled his ex’s "very exciting" pregnancy with Emma. However, he also admitted that though he intensely anticipated the birth of his daughter, he could not “handle” the realities of becoming a parent. 

"I loved my little daughter with the strength of Hercules, despite my own weaknesses," he noted, before adding, "However, I couldn’t handle the realities of an infant coming into my life, and I couldn’t handle being a parent!”

“I’m still not a father figure,” mourned the actor who boasts more than 700 acting credits. 

Later in the book, however, he revealed the primary reason behind his jeopardized relationship with his daughter. Blaming his substance abuse to be the root cause for his losing Emma’s custody, ‘The Dark Knight’ actor reveals he became an absent parent in Emma’s life. 

"The biggest consequence of my drug use was losing Emma," Robert wrote, and confessed, "I was still impossibly coked up when she was born, which explains everything."

He, however, did not fail to praise his daughter, who is a doting mother to her son Rhodes. 

"Emma, on the other hand, certainly knows what that role is — now grown up and a mom herself. She’s that person to her first child, Rhodes,” wrote Roberts. 

He also cleared up the rumor of him having a giant feud with his Oscar-winning actress sister regarding her helping Kelly in the custody battle. 

Roberts wrote, "I never saw myself as someone who deserved to have physical custody of Emma, not in a million years," before adding, "We both knew better than that. Kelly never claimed I was trying to get physical custody of Emma, so therefore, Julia never sided with Kelly in a custody fight."

"There really was no custody fight. I’m very happy to be straightening this out right now,” confessed the ‘Runaway Train’ actor. 

Referencing the involvement of Julia and his other sister Lisa Gillian in Emma’s custody agreement, he admitted that they were simply helping him out to settle his life. 

"My sisters were hoping that my having fathered a child that I loved with the woman I was with would maybe calm me down and make me more stable as a person," wrote Roberts, before adding, "Unfortunately, the stability has to come first. It’s not a child’s job to make you stable."

Eric Roberts revealed he wasn’t allowed to talk about Emma

Eric Roberts’ candid confessions in his book came after he admitted in a July episode of ‘Still Here Hollywood’ podcast that he wasn’t allowed to talk about his sister Julia Roberts and daughter Emma Roberts. 

Though he refused to discuss his sister, the ‘Best of the Best’ actor admitted that his daughter “told him not to talk about her.”

Nevertheless, he continued, “But I stumbled and do. I’m not supposed to talk about either of them. But I do."

“I'm in love with my daughter's work these days," he said while discussing his daughter’s canon of works, adding, “I can't believe how great she's become." 

"I'm so proud of her I can't see straight. Since her performance in 'Maybe I Do' until right now, she overwhelms me with pride and just, ‘Oh my God, here she goes again'. And I’m just so happy to be her dad, because she’s kicking a**. And I’m so proud," said Roberts. 

In his book, which is his attempt to convey an elaborate public apology to his family members, the veteran actor wrote, "I imagine I will remain as Julia’s brother and Emma Roberts’s dad for the rest of my life.”

"I'd like to make good on that, to move aside proudly and with grace. That’s part of the reason for writing this book,” confessed Roberts.