Drew Barrymore opens up about complicated relationship with father who attacked mom while pregnant with her

Drew Barrymore said, 'It was necessary for me to step away and start to become my own person, and at the age of 14, my own parent'
PUBLISHED MAR 5, 2024
Drew Barrymore reportedly did not have a happy childhood (Getty Images)
Drew Barrymore reportedly did not have a happy childhood (Getty Images)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Drew Barrymore reportedly had a troubled past as she shared a complicated relationship with her late father, John Drew Barrymore.

RadarOnline.com reported that John went violent with Drew’s mother Jaid when she was pregnant with her in 1974.

Drew Barrymore’s mother separated from her father after domestic violence

It was then the ‘50 First Dates’ star’s mother moved to a one-bedroom apartment in West Hollywood and began working as an office clerk.

However, within months after her birth, Drew started getting breaks in the entertainment industry, and by the age of six, she got her big opportunity to work in the 1982 movie, ‘E T the Extra-Terrestrial.’


 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Drew Barrymore (@drewbarrymore)


 

Drew Barrymore had addiction issues

But fame did not come alone for the 49-year-old actress as it was reported that during her adolescent years, she was addicted to partying, smoking cigarettes, and drinking.

RadarOnline.com citing the book, ‘Happily Ever After: The Drew Barrymore Story’, by Leah Furman and Elina Furman, said that Drew was addicted to drugs by the age of 12, which led her to rehab very early.

American actor John Drew Barrymore (1932 - 2004) looks through the doorway of his dressing room, ear
American actor John Drew Barrymore (1932 - 2004)  was the father of Drew Barrymore (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

However, at 14, she faced more issues after her parents got divorced in 1990 and she was emancipated from both of them.

In one of her blog posts, she reportedly shared, “When I got emancipated by the courts at 14 years old, the umbilical cord was severed, and I have not been the same since.”

She asserted, “It was necessary for me to step away and start to become my own person. And at the age of 14, my own parent.”

Drew Barrymore has now made peace with her past

Drew lost her father in 2004 and reportedly said that she’s now forgiven him as well as her mother.

During an episode of ‘The Drew Barrymore Show,’ the ‘Blended’ actress reportedly spoke about her late father as she said, “He just was always like, 'Just live and let live, man’. More of that, please.”

She also added, “I'm using a very bizarre example of a human, who's nobody's poster child of how to live a life. But 'just live and let live, man' was one of the best gifts he ever taught me, the little I was around him.”

This came as in an interview with Us Weekly, Drew recently revealed, “I’ve had a ‘bad girl’ narrative on my back my whole life. I thought I deserved bad things. Now I’m raising two daughters. I can’t do that to myself anymore.”

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 18: Drew Barrymore attends the 2022 Paramount Upfront at 666 Madison Avenue
Drew Barrymore spoke about her late father (Getty Images)

She added, “Kind of like the drinking — I’m picking off things one at a time, going, I can’t carry you anymore. You aren’t good for me.”

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