DREW party, ‘Life is an all-ages and everyone’s invited.’
‘I’ve always fantasised about having a desk job because it seemed like such a consistent life, and nothing about mine was grounded,’ Drew Barrymore says. Now she’s a CEO, and the ultimate girl boss.
Drew Barrymore is relentlessly positive. Just scrolling through her Instagram feed makes you feel cheerful. Even through her darkest times, including a troubled childhood, she seems to find a way to grow and learn from any experience. ‘There’s a warrior aspect to being happy. You’ve got to fight for it,’ she told Good Housekeeping. Drew is also possibly the ‘realest’ celeb out there because she’s so open about the messes and spills of life that we all go through, and so willing to let her guard down. Over the past few months she’s been rocking quite an unconventional look for Hollywood’s usually overly preened elite. Her brows are grown out, as are her dark roots. And the reason is simple: ‘I don’t feel like tweezing right now,’ she says. ‘I need to go back to my ’80s roots. The time right now is natural. Natural base colour. Natural brows. Natural face. Not being on the treadmill out of fear of ageing.’ She also plans on bringing the anklet back, she jokes. Sadly, her marriage to art consultant Will Kopelman has come to an end, with the pair announcing their divorce in March last year, after nearly four years of marriage. She’s spoken openly on the subject, telling Chelsea Handler on her talk show that she felt like ‘the biggest failure’. But if there’s
one thing Drew knows how to do, it’s how to pick herself up. ‘I had a really hard time a couple of months ago and kind of knew life was heading in a new direction. I called someone I really trust, respect, and believe in, because he’s always been the conductor of grace. I said, “What’s your advice?” He said, “You put one foot in front of the other.’”
For Drew, that means continuing to focus on her film company and beauty range. She also has a new eyewear line out, and she and Ellen DeGeneres had some fun playing dress-up with the specs on Ellen’s show. Flower Films, Drew’s production company, was founded in 1995 with good friend Nancy Juvonen. The company has produced films such as Never Been Kissed and cult classic Donnie Darko. She’s also the CEO of affordable cosmetics brand Flower Beauty, which she launched three years ago. The range is sold in Walmart stores across America and Canada.
While we might fantasise about life in Hollywood and what a glamorous acting career would be like, it’s the nineto-five life that Drew craves. ‘I’ve always fantasised about having a desk job, because it seemed like such a consistent life, and nothing about mine was grounded,’ she says. ‘And being a CEO? I mean, it’s pretty gangster.’
Well, we certainly agree with that. Drew is the ultimate girl boss, and the way she supports and invests in other women is just the cherry on top. ‘I care so much about messaging, and my message has been completely consistent my whole life: girls can do anything. Girls should have fun. Life is an all-ages party, and everyone’s invited.’
She really means it, if her accomplishments are anything to go by. So far on her list of careers, she can tick off actor, producer, director, CEO, winemaker and author. And she loves the variety. ‘It’s exciting to think that you don’t have to do one thing in life. I was an actress but that became ‘not enough’ at a certain point, and I wanted to challenge myself and do more, so I started making the movies myself. There were other things that also interested me along the way, like beauty and wine. ‘I’d love to live a few different lives in this one life. It’s best not to overthink it and just go do it!’
Acting might not be her main focus for now, but she hasn’t disappeared from that world completely. In 2015 she starred in the well-received drama Miss You Already, with Toni Collette. ‘The idea of Drew playing my best friend was like a total dreamy fantasy,’ Toni said in an interview. ‘She’s so vocal and is such a pioneer for all things female.’ Drew also produced 2016 rom-com How to be Single and stars in Netflix comedy series
Santa Clarita Diet. Oh, and she’s signed on as narrator for First Dates, an alternative dating show produced by Ellen DeGeneres.
And perhaps we can expect interesting collabs with the likes of Lena Dunham and Amy Schumer in the future. ‘Their brands of comedy and observational life stuff are some of the coolest I’ve seen in years,’ Drew told Harper’s
Bazaar. Then there are the women she shares everything with, an enviable crew that includes Gwyneth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz. Cameron, Drew’s co-star in Charlie’s Angels, is someone she can really lean on, she told Good Housekeeping. ‘If you’re in a scary prison in the middle of nowhere, call Cameron. She’ll get you out. If you’re looking for the best dinner-cooking partner and watching-TV-on-the-couch friend, call her. If someone is in a medical situation, call her! She’s the most loyal, fierce, fun, cosy friend.’
‘Good women change your life. I didn’t grow up traditionally, with that dining room table sort of setting.’ Her father, John, and mother, Jaid, divorced when the actress was nine, with Drew legally separating from them at 14. ‘My girls are my family, and I love my journey. My destiny is to raise two daughters.’ Drew’s firstborn, Olive, is five years old and the youngest, Frankie, is two. As a parent, Drew describes herself as an ‘overachiever’, ‘not because I think I’m going to repeat the patterns of my parents. That’s not my fear. I’ve broken that pattern in my life. But having grown up in the opposite way, I’m raising my children with all consistency, all protection. This is my chance to get it right.’ And she’d never let them become child stars, but she does encourage them to do art, music and gymnastics.
She also insists she’s not a ‘cool mom’. ‘I’m definitely really goofy; I don’t think I’m cool at all!’ she said in a TV interview. ‘My own daughter’s like: “All right, enough dancing around.”’ But that very quality – her lightness and ability to smile through difficulty – will probably stay with her daughters forever.
‘My life’s mission and the only thing that matters as of now is that my daughters know what our lives were like, how we lived and how much I love them,’ Drew told
Popsugar: ‘For them to know that they weren’t just loved, but ridiculously, utterly, life-alteringly loved. That’s the only reason I’m here now!’