Why Julia Roberts was ‘crushed’ at the start of ‘Pretty Woman’ filming

Julia Roberts was “crushed” when the original version of her hit 1990 rom-com “Pretty Woman” was initially scrapped.

“It was going to be a much darker film called ‘$3,000,’ ” Roberts, 56, said, referring to the amount it cost Edward (played by Richard Gere) to spend the night with Vivian Ward.

“Vivian was a drug addict and the movie ended with him leaving her in a side street, throwing the money at her, and driving away,” Roberts said during an appearance on “The Graham Norton Show” Friday, while promoting her Netflix film “Leave the World Behind.”

“I got that part in that movie and felt really proud, but when the production company folded and the film disappeared I was crushed,” the “Eat, Pray, Love” star added. “But then Disney picked it up, which seemed so unlikely, and made it funny.”

The film, which grossed $463.4 million at the box office, tells the story of Vivian, an LA prostitute, who is hired by a wealthy businessman to accompany him to various events over a weekend.

Ultimately, the pair end up falling in love and staying together.

The film earned Roberts a Golden Globe and Academy Award nomination.

Due to the commercial success of the film, it was adapted as a Broadway musical in 2018 where it ran at the Nederlander theater in New York City for a year.

Roberts appeared on the famed British talk show alongside Tom Hanks, Cher and Timothée Chalamet.

In 2019, Roberts appeared in Variety’s “Actors on Actors” series where she also told Patricia Arquette about the film’s journey.

According to the Oscar winner, she “had no business being in a movie like that” — and was even skeptical about Disney taking over the project.

“There was one producer that stayed with the script and then it went to Disney,” Roberts said. “And I went, ‘Went to Disney? Are they gonna animate it? How does this become a Disney movie?’ “

The “Sleeping With the Enemy” star reportedly spent time with hookers in order to prepare for the role.

“I recruited two young women who came to the clinic regularly, and I paid them $35 each to meet with Julia,” Barbara Marshall, the widow of Garry Marshall who directed the film, told Page Six in 2019.

“I went back to work, and about 20 minutes later, Julia yelled from the end of the hall, ‘Bye, Barbara. We’re going to take a drive. We’ll be back later.’ ”

According to Marshall, she panicked and called her husband.

“ ‘Your star just left with a group of girls, and I think they were heading to Hollywood Boulevard. I’m worried. What if she doesn’t come back?’ ” she recalled saying. “[Roberts] is one tough lady who can take care of herself on and off camera.”

“Pretty Woman” also starred Jason Alexander, Laura San Giacomo and Hector Elizondo. Nine years after its release, Roberts reunited with Gere, 74, in the beloved 1999 hit “Runaway Bride.”