Roberts was born in Decatur, Georgia. She is of English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, German, and Swedish descent. Her parents, Betty Lou Bredemus (1934-2015) and Walter Grady Roberts (1933-1977), one-time actors and playwrights, met while touring a production of "George Washington Slept Here" for the armed forces. In 1963 they co-founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop in Atlanta, Georgia. Roberts' mother, became a church secretary and real estate agent, and her Father, a vacuum cleaner salesman. They filed for divorce in 1971 and it was finalized early in 1972. Eric stayed with his Father in Atlanta, estranged from his sisters.

She has had roles in such films as I Love Trouble (1994), Something to Talk About (1995), Runaway Bride (1999), Maid in Manhattan (2002), Mona Lisa Smile (2003) and Raising Helen (2004). She produced the film Nothing to Lose (1997) in which she played a small role; other actors were Adrien Brody and Tony Gillan. She also had a guest role in the TV-series Friends in an episode that guest-starred her sister, Julia Roberts. In the 2011 movie Mirror Mirror, based on the story of Snow White, she played Julia Roberts' reflection in a magic mirror.