Plot
Set in London in 1938, the film focuses on highly successful and extremely popular theatre actress Julia Lambert, whose gradual disillusionment with her career as she approaches middle age has prompted her to ask her husband, stage director Michael Gosselyn, and his financial backer, Dolly de Vries, to close her current production to allow her time to travel abroad. They convince her to remain with the play throughout the summer, and Michael introduces her to Tom Fennel, an enterprising American who confesses his deep appreciation of her work. Seeking the passion missing from her marriage, and anxious to fill the void left when her close friend Lord Charles suggested they part ways to avoid scandalous gossip, Julia embarks on a passionate affair with the young man and begins to support him so he may enjoy the glamorous lifestyle to which she has introduced him. Their relationship revives her, sparking a distinct change in her personality. Always hovering in the background and offering counsel is the spirit of her mentor, Jimmie Langton, the theatrical manager who gave Julia her start and made her a star, while flesh-and-blood Evie serves as her personal maid, dresser, and confidante.
Michael suggests they invite Tom to spend time at their country estate, where he can become better acquainted with their son Roger. At a party there Tom meets aspiring actress Avice Crichton, and when Julia sees him flirting with the pretty young woman she becomes jealous and anxious and angrily confronts him. He slowly reveals himself to be a callous, social-climbing, gold-digging gigolo, and Julia is shattered when their affair comes to an end.
Avice, now romantically involved with Tom, asks him to bring Julia to see her perform in a play in the hope the actress will convince her husband to cast her in a supporting role in Julia's upcoming new project. The play is dreadful and Avice is not much better. Backstage, Julia compliments her even worse co-star and barely acknowledges Avice, although she promises to tell Michael about her. Afterwards, she forces Tom to admit he loves Avice, then - although her heart is broken by his admission - she assures him she will insist the ingenue be cast in her next play.
When Julia's performance in her current play begins to suffer due to her personal discontent, Michael closes the production and Julia visits her mother and Aunt Carrie in Jersey, where Lord Charles comes to visit her. Julia suggests a romantic tryst, and he gently tells her that he's gay. Meanwhile, back in London, Avice auditions for Michael and, although Julia resents her, she is given the role.
Julia returns home to begin rehearsals for the new play. Shortly after, she learns from her son that Avice has been one of Michael's casual trysts. Still, she is uncharacteristically solicitous toward the girl, making suggestions that place her in the spotlight and insisting her own wardrobe be drab to allow Avice to shine. What her director and fellow cast members don't realize is there's a method to her seeming madness - Julia has planned her sweet revenge for the opening night performance, during which she successfully affirms her position as London theatre's foremost diva.
Read more about this topic: Being Julia
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