Bio
Drew Barrymore is an American actress and film producer. She has her own production company, Flower Films.
Barrymore made her screen début in Altered States (1980), while her breakout role came two years later in E.T. as Gertie, which brought the then young actress widespread attention, and she quickly became one of the most recognised child actresses.
In the late-1980s and early-1990s, Barrymore had various problems with alcohol and drugs, which somewhat damaged her career. She also bared it all for Playboy in 1995.
She made a comeback with the thriller Poison Ivy (1992), and after began to perform predominantly in leading roles in a variety of films, ranging from big budget romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction, horror films, and action thrillers.
Barrymore has an iconic image as one of the world's most recognized celebrities, and has a worldwide box office gross that stands at over $2.3-billion.
She is the granddaughter of John Barrymore, arguably the most acclaimed actor of the first half of the twentieth century.
Biography And Career
Barrymore was born Drew Blythe Barrymore on February 22, 1975 in Culver City, California to John Drew Barrymore and Hungarian-American Jaid Barrymore (née Makó), both former actors.
Her parents divorced sometime after Drew was born. She has a half-brother John Blyth Barrymore, also an actor.
Family
Barrymore was born into the acting profession, coming from a long line of acting talent stretching back nearly 200 years; her great-great grandparents John Drew, Louisa Lane Drew, her great-grandparents Maurice Barrymore, Georgiana Drew and Maurice Costello, and her grandparents John Barrymore and Dolores Costello were all highly successful actors.
She is the great-niece of Lionel Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, and Helene Costello, and the great grandniece of John Drew, Jr., actress Louisa Drew, and silent film actor/writer/director Sidney Drew.
Her father John Drew Barrymore was an actor. Her half-brother John Blyth Barrymore is an actor. Her mother is the Hungarian-American Jaid Barrymore.
Her first name Drew was the maiden name of her paternal great-grandmother, Georgiana Drew; her middle name Blyth was the original surname of the dynasty founded by her great-grandfather, Maurice Barrymore.
Early work
Her career began at the age of 11 months when she auditioned for a dog food commercial. When she was bitten by her canine co-star, the producers feared she'd cry, but she merely laughed, and was hired for the job.
Her first role came in in Altered States (1980), and just a year later, she shot to fame with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial as Gertie.
In 1984 she also received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Irreconcilable Differences.
In the wake of this sudden stardom, she endured a notoriously troubled childhood, smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol by the time she was 9, smoking marijuana at 10, and snorting cocaine at 12.
Barrymore later described this period of her life in her 1990 autobiography, Little Girl Lost.
Her nightlife and constant partying became a popular subject with the media when it occurred.
Though overcoming her substance abuse problems by the time she entered adulthood, she maintained her "bad girl" image, and leveraged her new-found role as a sex symbol to stage a career comeback playing a manipulative, evil teenage seductress in Poison Ivy (1992).
The film found enormous success on VHS when it was first released. She posed nude for the January, 1995 issue of Playboy.
Steven Spielberg (her godfather) gave her a quilt for her 20th birthday with a note that read "Cover yourself up." Enclosed was a copy of her Playboy appearance, with the pictures altered by his art department so that she appeared fully clothed.
At that time she had also appeared nude in her last five movies.
During a 1995 appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, Barrymore shocked the normally unflappable host by climbing onto his desk and flashing him (but with her back to the camera) for his birthday.
She also modeled in a series of Guess? jeans ads during this time.
She had made what many consider a powerful comeback with an iconic, but small performance in the highly successful and critically acclaimed 1996 horror film Scream.
According to reports, she was offered the lead role of Sydney Prescott (which ultimately went to Neve Campbell) in Scream, but turned it down requesting to star as the opening death of Casey Becker, because she stated it would "be more fun to do".
Director Wes Craven wasn't too happy with the idea but cast her anyway.
1996-present: Continued fame
Barrymore has continued to be highly bankable, and a top box office draw. She has been especially adept in romantic comedies, such as Wishful Thinking (1996), The Wedding Singer (1998), Home Fries (1998), Never Been Kissed (1999), 50 First Dates (2004), and Fever Pitch (2005).
Summing up Drew's appeal, Roger Ebert, in his review of 50 First Dates describes Barrymore as having a "smiling, coy sincerity", describing the film as "ingratiating and lovable".
She has also produced several films, including Charlie's Angels (2000), which was a major box office success of 2000.
After Charlie's Angels, Drew had a dramatic role in the comedy/drama Riding in Cars with Boys (2001), where she played a teenage mother in a failed marriage with the drug-addicted father (based on the real-life story of Beverly D'Onofrio).
In Richard Kelly's debut movie Donnie Darko she was cast as Karen Pomeroy, the title character's English teacher in a fairly small role.
In 2003, she reprised her role as Dylan Sanders in the Charlie's Angels sequel: Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. Maxim magazine featured Barrymore and her fellow Angels in their Girls of Maxim gallery after the launch of the film.
Later in 2002, Drew had a role in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, alongside Julia Roberts.
She was the subject of My Date with Drew (2005). In it, an aspiring filmmaker and fan uses his limited resources in an attempt to gain a date with her.
On February 3, 2004, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Barrymore has upcoming roles in Lucky You (2007), and Music and Lyrics (2007). In 2006 she hosted Saturday Night Live for the fifth time (making her the second female host in the show's history to achieve this; Candice Bergen being the first).
Personal Life
Barrymore had her first kiss with Breckin Meyer who went to her elementary school according to an extra on the DVD 50 First Dates.
She was married to Welsh bartender turned bar owner, Jeremy Thomas, from March 20-April 28, 1994, and to comedian Tom Green from July 7, 2001-October 15, 2002 (Green filed for divorce in December 2001).
Drew Barrymore took over the care of her father, John Drew Barrymore until his death of cancer in 2003.
In January 2007, Barrymore separated from drummer Fabrizio Moretti of The Strokes, with whom she had been with since April 2002.
She is also the godmother to rock stars Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain's child, Frances Bean Cobain.
Barrymore has multiple tattoos: a cross on her lower leg, a crescent moon on her toe and butterflies on her chest and stomach.
Barrymore has also stated that she enjoys running naked through Irish wheat fields.