Julia Roberts on Twins Hazel & Phinnaeus Turning 19: ‘I Love Them So Much’ (Exclusive)

Julia Roberts is back on the small screen in the new Netflix movie “Leave the World Behind,” co-starring Mahershala Ali.

“Extra’s” Adam Glassman sat down with the stars, asking Julia about her recent Instagram post celebrating her twins Hazel and Phinnaeus’ 19th birthday.

Roberts told Adam, “It is something to be celebrated, and I know Instagram is a place where people like to share happy things and I love them so much and I really did just happen to come upon this cute picture and I thought… That allows me to share something as a proud parent of them without infringing on their privacy at all.”

Julia’s performance in "Leave the World Behind" is unlike anything she's done before. The movie is based on the novel of the same title, and centers around a family vacation on Long Island that is interrupted by two strangers bearing news of a mysterious blackout. Julia plays Amanda, who is married to Ethan Hawke’s character Clay. Mahershala is the owner of their fancy vacation rental who shows up in the middle of the global cyberattack.

Adam points out that Julia plays “almost a Karen, so to speak, who is a little prickly and quite suspicious.”

Julia replied, “I do feel bad for all women called Karen, that was a bad moment, but she is a Karen. Unfortunately, we built it in such a way that you know exactly what that means now, and I think she’s a Karen.”

And with the cyberattack comes the failure of technology. Adam asked, “We’ve all become very dependent on technology. What do you miss about the world when we didn’t have to keep looking at our phones and iPads from years past?

Julia shared, “I miss when you couldn’t get ahold of people, or they couldn’t get ahold of you. Not only just that period, but then I think of a family coming together at the end of the day and you actually have things to talk about at dinner because you haven’t been in contact all day long a hundred times… or a busy signal.”

Mahershala added, “I miss the feeling of boredom. You should never be bored, really... I do think that as a reaction to the feeling of boredom you grab your phone and start scrolling… Then you just never have to sit with that and come up with a thought or an idea or think something over because you can so easily look at something else.”

So, what is more frightening… being stuck in the house with no devices or the world ending?

Julia said, “I would always rather be stuck in the house with kids and no devices. That sounds like a good time to me.”

Adam asked, “How dependent are your kids on their devices?”

Roberts explained, “I don’t think of them as dependent on their devices… We have never had an issue with that. I think we can all spend less time on our phones, on our computers. I am guilty of playing too many New York Times crossword puzzles in a day… A little self-monitoring of it.”

Adam also asked what they liked about working with each other.

Julia joked, “Say ‘nothing’… to throw him off.”

Mahershala laughed and said, “I just like collaborating with Julia, just setting out to meet the task of the day everyday… I think acting is hard… To work with somebody who is like. ‘Come on, let’s do this together...’ Getting to work with someone who just says yes, because I have also worked with people where there is resistance, too… She's just an extraordinary partner, so thank you so much!”

Julia wiped away fake tears in response to Ali’s praise.

But a truly sad moment recently was the death of Matthew Perry, and the sitcom “Friends” happens to be featured in the Netflix movie.

Glassman asked, “What did this nod to ‘Friends’ mean to you?”

Julia said, “It is an incredible — not just a coincidence, but a sweet little happening, a joyful moment with a girl in our movie.”

Ali added, “A tribute to him, to all of them and their contribution to culture, but the fact that he recently passed is kind of sweet timing. It is a moment that can contribute to some sort of happiness to folks.”