Julia Roberts' half-sister Nancy Motes dead from apparent drug overdose, family 'shocked and devastated' after 'Pretty Woman' starlet's 'fat little sister' revelation

Reports confirm that Nany Motes, the younger half-sister of award-winning actress Julia Roberts, was found dead in LA of an apparent drug overdose. Motes was 37-years-old.

Details surrounding Motes' tragic death still remain unknown, but her family released this official statement on Monday (Feb. 10):

"It is with deep sadness that the family of Nancy Motes... confirms that she was found dead in Los Angeles yesterday of an apparent drug overdose. There is no official report from the Coroner's office yet."

Family and friends are both shocked and devastated by the news.  

Nancy was the youngest of three siblings, Julia Roberts and Lisa Roberts Gillan. Motes was the daughter of Oscar-winning actress Betty Lou and stepfather Michael Motes. 

Back in August 2013, reports suggested that Motes was tired of being known as the "Pretty Woman" starlet's "fat little sister." Apparently, Roberts "bullied" Motes into losing weight through gastric bypass surgery.

"When you're in a family of very, very exceptionally beautiful people it's intimidating... I think that growing up as Pretty Woman's little sister has definitely made me try to see the person inside and not the person outside. A lot of my life I felt judged for my weight."

Roberts allegedly teased her sister a lot - "When I was in high school and she was an adult, she would just let me know that I was definitely overweight. She would make it quite clear to me and in a not so nice manner... Julia did not want to see me go down that path [of acting] ... So I just got a lot of criticism from Julia, which was very discouraging for me."

The Daily Mail reports that Motes' procedure cost $20,000, and she was still working on her relationship with Roberts up until the time of her death - "It's a work in progress, it's not going to be fixed overnight, nor do I think it's going to be fixed by me just getting skinny." 

RIP, Nancy Motes. Stay tuned as more details develop.