Drew Barrymore(I)
- Producer
- Actress
- Director
Since melting audiences' hearts at the tender age of six - in Steven Spielberg's beloved sci-fi blockbuster, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) - Drew Barrymore has emerged as one of the most endearing and talented actresses of her generation. Born in Culver City, California to actors John Drew Barrymore and Jaid Barrymore, the clutches of fame were virtually inescapable for young Drew, her father being a member of the esteemed showbiz dynasty fronted by stage star Maurice Barrymore, his thespian wife Georgiana, and their three children: Lionel Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, and John Barrymore.
Tailgating a turbulent adolescence that saw her grapple with insobriety, substance abuse, and cutthroat media vitriol, a determined Barrymore threw herself into her film career during the early-mid nineties, first with a succession of "bad girl" parts in cultish B-pics like Poison Ivy (1992), Guncrazy (1992), Doppelganger (1993), and - fittingly - Bad Girls (1994); then well-received turns in prestige vehicles such as Boys on the Side (1995), Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You (1996), and the game-changing Wes Craven horror hit, Scream (1996). An eclectic mixture of high-profile and low-key projects - The Wedding Singer (1998); Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998); Never Been Kissed (1999); Charlie's Angels (2000); Donnie Darko (2001); Riding in Cars with Boys (2001); Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) - followed, proving to skeptics that Barrymore was not just a formidable leading lady, but a versatile and singularly gifted performer. Headline parts in 50 First Dates (2004), Fever Pitch (2005), and Music and Lyrics (2007) came next, as did the critically adored teleflick Grey Gardens (2009), for which she bagged Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild prizes for her extraordinary embodiment of Edith Bouvier Beale.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Barrymore - whose production company, Flower Films, has spawned a bundle of lucrative features since its birth in '95 - fastened an additional string to her bow when she spearheaded the sports dramedy Whip It (2009), her long-awaited directorial debut. Roger Ebert described the picture as having "guts, charm, and a black-and-blue sweetness", whilst Mary Pols of TIME declared Barrymore to be "a sensitive director who knows how and when to let an emotional moment linger on the screen".
Subsequent film gigs - Going the Distance (2010), Big Miracle (2012), Blended (2014), Miss You Already (2015), The Stand In (2020) - aside, her star turn as zombified suburban mom Sheila Hammond - a tour de force at once ditzy and detailed - on Netflix's Santa Clarita Diet (2017) saw Barrymore step courageously into the regular small-screen realm; an evolution she continues to embrace with her role as impassioned compère of CBS daytimer The Drew Barrymore Show (2020).
Tailgating a turbulent adolescence that saw her grapple with insobriety, substance abuse, and cutthroat media vitriol, a determined Barrymore threw herself into her film career during the early-mid nineties, first with a succession of "bad girl" parts in cultish B-pics like Poison Ivy (1992), Guncrazy (1992), Doppelganger (1993), and - fittingly - Bad Girls (1994); then well-received turns in prestige vehicles such as Boys on the Side (1995), Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You (1996), and the game-changing Wes Craven horror hit, Scream (1996). An eclectic mixture of high-profile and low-key projects - The Wedding Singer (1998); Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998); Never Been Kissed (1999); Charlie's Angels (2000); Donnie Darko (2001); Riding in Cars with Boys (2001); Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) - followed, proving to skeptics that Barrymore was not just a formidable leading lady, but a versatile and singularly gifted performer. Headline parts in 50 First Dates (2004), Fever Pitch (2005), and Music and Lyrics (2007) came next, as did the critically adored teleflick Grey Gardens (2009), for which she bagged Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild prizes for her extraordinary embodiment of Edith Bouvier Beale.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Barrymore - whose production company, Flower Films, has spawned a bundle of lucrative features since its birth in '95 - fastened an additional string to her bow when she spearheaded the sports dramedy Whip It (2009), her long-awaited directorial debut. Roger Ebert described the picture as having "guts, charm, and a black-and-blue sweetness", whilst Mary Pols of TIME declared Barrymore to be "a sensitive director who knows how and when to let an emotional moment linger on the screen".
Subsequent film gigs - Going the Distance (2010), Big Miracle (2012), Blended (2014), Miss You Already (2015), The Stand In (2020) - aside, her star turn as zombified suburban mom Sheila Hammond - a tour de force at once ditzy and detailed - on Netflix's Santa Clarita Diet (2017) saw Barrymore step courageously into the regular small-screen realm; an evolution she continues to embrace with her role as impassioned compère of CBS daytimer The Drew Barrymore Show (2020).
Child Stars, Then and Now
Child Stars, Then and Now
Kirsten Dunst and more Hollywood favorites that started their careers as kids. How many do you recognize?