LIFESTYLE

Drew Barrymore: ‘I am my own worst critic’

5 August, 2024 . 0

Hollywood darling Drew Barrymore opens up about the power of positivity, building a global empire and the myth of perfection.

Considered Hollywood royalty and a pop culture icon, Drew Barrymore has spent the greater part of her life in the public eye.

Because of this, she knows the strength of resilience — and it’s shaped her into the inspiring powerhouse she is today.

Despite the trials and tribulations that life has thrown at her over the years, the effervescent actor, talk show host, producer, and author refuses to dwell in a dark place.

“I definitely am my own worst critic, but I don’t let that attitude permeate,” says the 50 First Dates and Never Been Kissed star.

“I always seek the light and I really value a sense of humour. It also helps that I’m around people who are super funny, because I love to laugh.”

Growing up in the spotlight

Drew has been in the spotlight since she was a child star in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, but never more so than now.

Her hit daytime talk show, The Drew Barrymore Show, has been renewed for a fifth season, and there’s growing speculation she’s making a return to the Charlie’s Angels franchise.

This month, she also toured Australia as part of the wellness festival Wanderlust True North, opening up about how she rebuilt her life from the ground up as a mother, entrepreneur, and social advocate.

“I’ve been coming to Australia my whole life for work and it’s a place I really love and feel connected to,” Drew shares.

Riding the wave of stardom

Drew Barrymore has lived the highs and lows that often come with movie stardom but has come out the other side strong and in control of a string of passion projects.

For the much-loved A-lister with legions of fans around the world, wellness is about mental health, which is why she likes to gravitate to discussions about how we behave and react with one another and ultimately how our minds work.

“I’m often in my head and check in with myself: ‘Did you speak negatively to yourself today? Were you able to take a deep breath and not react in the moment? Were you able to not overidealise someone you went on a date with?’” she says.

“If my body was getting the equivalent workout to my mind, I feel like I would be a bodybuilder.”

The myth of perfection

Drew’s talent for authentic connection can be seen on her Instagram account, where her 17.7 million followers get unfiltered insights into her life and sense of fun.

While social media can be a ruthless platform to navigate, let alone when you’re famous, Drew keeps things authentic and relatable.

“Maybe my whole life of working and talking to people helped set me up (for keeping things real on social media),” she says.

“We try so hard to keep everything perfect and life’s big joke is that perfection doesn’t exist.”

Finding her passion

The past few years have been particularly transformative for Drew, who has launched a string of successful projects, including her talk show, homewares line Beautiful by Drew, and quarterly magazine Drew, while also expanding her beauty brand Flower Beauty and production company Flower Films.

“Honestly, it was sort of an accident how (the projects) all came about. We’re coming up for 11 years of Flower Beauty — a milestone I’m shocked and thrilled to reach — and it fed this desire to keep challenging myself,” she says.

“With Beautiful by Drew, it was sparked by my love of industrial design and observing a gap within the homewares and furniture space — appliances we’re forced to look at, which might as well look good.”

An eye for design

So good was Drew’s sense of design that one of her first pieces, a swivel lounge chair, went viral online before proceeding to sell out across the US.

It was during her foray into homewares that the opportunity to launch The Drew Barrymore Show came about.

She knew exactly what kind of talk show she wanted to create and didn’t let a minor hurdle like launching in the midst of a pandemic get in the way of her vision.

“As difficult as it was, I actually think launching at that time inspired a much more robust, well-rounded program where you can’t anticipate what’s next,” she says.

Rather than only focus on celebrity guests, Drew also talks with people from all walks of life and engages in a variety of subjects and discussion points.

“Humans are multifaceted,” she notes.

“Even though I’ve spent my life in television and film, I have so many other interests and our audience is no different. Plus, I thought, ‘Why does night time (TV) get to have all the fun?’”

A new direction blooms

It’s not the only TV project keeping her busy, with Flower Films recently getting the green light to reboot the classic game show Hollywood Squares.

“My oldest and best friend, Nan, is my partner in Flower Films and next year marks 30 years of our partnership, which is so special,” she says.

“I think most of my close friends have been in my life for two or three decades. None of them are psychopaths or kiss-ass. They know when to be supportive or tough on me and that’s important.”

Flower Beauty is another testament to Drew’s business psyche.

The cosmetic line, available at Chemist Warehouse, came out long before the wave of celebrity beauty brands.

“When we launched, it was a wild time for beauty because make-up tutorials and social media had just started and it all felt very fun and fresh,” she says.

“I found myself learning about mixing pigment in the labs, fragrance accords, that entire world.

“I was so infinitely involved with Flower Beauty when it started and it got 100 percent of my attention. And now nothing gets my undivided attention.

“Unless you can slice yourself up like an apple, your priorities shift and you learn to delegate work with people you trust.”

A balancing act

When it comes to priorities, Drew’s two daughters, Olive and Frankie, who she shares with ex-husband Will Kopelman, are at the top of the list.

Sometimes they will visit their famous mother on set and watch her in her element, but Drew says she’s rarely distracted in their company.

“Making sure I’m on top of their schedule means sometimes I have to push work out of the way and make that time just about them,” she says.

“I’m constantly finding the balance and it never feels like, ‘Oh man, I’m really pulling this off’. I feel emotional and overwhelmed a lot. But I’m really good at being present with my kids.”

Drew is more selective with her acting projects these days, but it’s still something she gets a lot of joy from.

“I still get approached (by fans) about everything from Donnie Darko to the Santa Clarita Diet and it’s fun to see what projects connect with people the most,” she says.

More recently, Drew made headlines for her emotional Instagram post about one of her best-known films, The Wedding Singer, which also starred good friend and longtime collaborator Adam Sandler.

“That (post) was for Adam because we really did make something special,” she says.

“I was on my way to a yoga class and it just so happened to be on TV, so I thought I’d watch until the commercial break. Cut to me two hours later, sobbing.”

An inspired future

Given her rising business trajectory, becoming the next celebrity billionaire isn’t out of the question, but according to Drew, it’s not something on her radar.

“I never considered building an empire or billion-dollar brand,” she says.

“I don’t know if I can achieve that and I don’t want money to be the goal. I want to be inspired and I want my projects to hold me in a way that I feel like I can’t give it up or walk away.”

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Written by beauty editor Charlotte Brundrett.