Julia Roberts gushes over 'doggone great' Whoopi Goldberg as she praises 'The View' host's acting chops

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Julia Roberts could not help gushing over Whoopi Goldberg for her role in the thriller-comedy 'Ezra' when she appeared as a guest on 'The View' on December 4.

In a recently uploaded clip on X, Roberts calls everyone's attention and says, "I was on the phone with my husband this morning (who) is a cinematographer, and he filmed this beautiful movie called 'Ezra' which Whoopi Goldberg is in, and you are so doggone great in this movie," to rousing applause from the audience and the other co-hosts.

The movie, which was released in September, starred Robert De Niro and Bobby Cannavale, among others.

Goldberg played the role of an agent to Cannavale's character, a stand-up comedian. Robert's husband, cinematographer Daniel Moder, worked on the film.

"You give this masterclass in nuance in this part. You take this part that was maybe 10 pages - I don't know - but you make it so critical to understanding him and just all of it. It was so great," continues the actress.

Goldberg is noticeably moved by the praises and applause and replies with a humble "Thank you," before giving credit to the director, Tony Goldwyn.

Julia Roberts talks about 'Leave the World Behind'

Host Sunny Hostin asked Roberts to talk about her new apocalyptic thriller film without giving away any spoilers, which she confessed was a difficult thing to do.

"For me, it's really about this family (who) goes off on the weekend, and then there's a knock on the door in the middle of the night. So the movie kind of picks up from there," explained Roberts.

"I don't play the nicest person," she adds. "I don't play someone that I would necessarily be friends with. She's a bit prickly," she added. 

When a host stated that there are a lot of people like that, the actress quipped, "I had a lot of source material."

Barack and Michelle Obama were on the production team

Host Ana Navarro asked Roberts what it was like to have the former first couple participate in the filmmaking, to which Roberts responded that it was really exciting.

"We were so honored when they wanted to participate. Sam (Esmail, the director) and I were so puffed up, you couldn't even deal with us for weeks," she stated.

The movie is based on the 2020 novel of the same name by Rumaan Alam and featured in Barack Obama's reading list that year. The former President had reportedly provided valuable insights and detailed notes on the script.