I’ve always been a fan of Drew Barrymore. However, I was meh on her talk show in the beginning. So I was thrilled when it grew on me the way it did in its second season. I figured, like most things pertaining to Drew, she just won me over. But it turns out that isn’t the case, there have been subtle improvements. Drew, who was one of Variety’s Power of Women honorees, talked about her approach to her show and how it’s where she wants to be right now. She feels it’s working because she’s presenting her authentic self. I agree. Watching Drew’s show makes me feel like I’ve been invited over for lunch with her and her friends. One thing Drew thought wasn’t working was her interviews, because she was over-talking her guests. Now she’s learning when to talk and when to let them speak
How she’s improved: I learned to become a better listener. In the beginning, I over-talked to people, which I felt embarrassed about. There’s an art figuring out how to navigate a conversation — and when to stop talking.
She hopes to interview Britney Spears: We can have a unique conversation. There’s not a ton of us out there who have publicly lost our freedom, had breakdowns in front of everyone, become punchlines and fought our way back.
Why she keeps it real: Am I going to go out there and be radically different than myself? That would be misleading my kids — to be this perfect, polished person without a past… who never thinks about a date and doesn’t want to talk about love.
She doesn’t plan to return to film anytime soon: I don’t want to be someone else right now. I’m figuring my own stuff out.
Both Drew and Kelly Clarkson were guilty of over-talking their guests. Jimmy Fallon does this as well, although not as much as he used to. A host’s job is to make the guest look good and that takes finessing . Graham Norton is fantastic at this. Johnny Carson, Dinah Shore, and Phil Donahue were all good at this as well. There are others who are/were good at it, but only if they like the guests. The fact that Drew recognized this in the first season is a sharp learning curve that will serve her well. I would say she’s still honing her skills but I’m sure she’d say the same. She inevitably ends up gushing over someone she adores, but she keeps it in check until the end and by then, it’s kind of sweet. Besides, like Drew said, she’s always going to be herself, and Drew bubbling over is part of why we love her.
Which is why I am so intrigued by Drew’s desire to interview Britney Spears. For context, Britney posted a video on Instagram in which she talks about Drew and Kate Hudson, saying of all the celebrities she’s ever met, they were “by far the 2 most beautiful people I have ever seen in my life !!!” Drew talked about this affectionately on her show. So it’s not just another person looking to profit off of Britney’s recent release, there’s a mutual admiration there. Also, as Drew said, they have an empathy with common troubled childhoods becoming punchlines in the media. But one of the biggest things Drew has going for her as a talk show host is trust. Most celebrities know they will be in a safe space on her and that Drew will be rooting for them. And it’s not a weird cheerleader thing either, it’s an experienced big sister vibe. Or your hippie aunt who gives you life advice you can actually use. Britney would be in good hands with Drew. I’d love to see that.
Photo credit: Instagram and InStar images
I adore Drew Barrymore. She just radiates something lovely and special.
This exactly, couldn’t have said it better.
Have loved her my whole life and she is not perfect, but she had always been authentic and it’s so damn endearing
Yes, she is so damn relatable!
+1
I love drew, but I find the show soooo cheesy and annoying. To each his own.
I find her incredibly irritating as an actress but as a person she seems lovely and I’m always happy to see her thriving. She’s probably so used to being interviewed and being the one doing the talking that it’d an adjustment for her to be the one asking questions and having to listen.
You’re right Graham Norton is excellent at this. He slowly pulls the story out of his guests and let them tell the punchline.
Fallon is still so over the top force laughing at everything. When he was by himself during Covid it was actually his best format.
Love Drew so much because we are the same age and she’s one of those celebrities that you feel you grew up with. So glad she’s getting into her groove. Successful talk shows take a lot of work and very few pull it off.
So overtalking is a classic adhd thing. I do it a lot. I realised I was adhd at 50 (I’m 58). So there’s more to unpack I’d guess
I am somewhat like Drew and work in academia. I struggled for awhile trying to fit in to the often sexist, classist world of academia–“you’re too feminine, you don’t act serious” blah blah. However, I realized that I can never pretend to be something I am not. I will never not be chatty or warm, and it takes too much effort for me to put on a persona. I am who I am.
Someone recently asked me how I successfully got voted in as a faculty senator repping the entire university without having any previous experience. I told them it’s because I’ve treated people with respect and don’t pretend to be something I am not. People know that I mean what I say and can trust me, which goes a long way!
Congrats to you being chosen as faculty senator-that’s fantastic!
Very sweet–thank you!!
Drew was so young when she was institutionalized – but she went through some crap and her parents were… not great at being parents.
Even if Brit didn’t want to do her big interview (assuming she does one) in Drew’s show, they would indeed have a lot to talk about. And Drew would probably make a great industry hippie aunt to Brit.
We collectively want to see Brit thrive.
I watched a piece from Drew’s show where she revisited her childhood homes, including the place she was institutionalized.
It was very moving. What I love about Drew is that she is so open and vulnerable, life hasn’t made her jaded.
Another talk show host that overtalks her guests….Kelly Clarkson.
Overtalking is being self centered and all about me. Drew ia a horrible listener and interviewer. She tried to interview Paris Hilton and kept interrupting and talking over her. Listening is a skill. I hope she does not land the Brit interview.
It definitely can be. Like when an interview becomes more about the interviewer than the interviewee. People who constantly interrupt. Or those anti-SJWs who create 7 different aliases in an online community to constantly punch down, and to bitch about the wussification of America. All examples of overtalking, me me me behaviors.
The timing of this article is interesting. People on social media were really angry about how she handled the Depp/Heard trial (laughing with Anthony Anderson about some of the revelations). She seems lovely enough, but I wonder if this is to change that narrative.
I agree, Looneytunes. Normally I like Drew, but I was pretty disappointed by that.
I love that picture of her in the floor length dark gown…. She’s starting to look like an older, wise Hollywood dame in a way that is really lovely to see. I’m just so happy when celebrities let us see them age. I’m the same age as her, and always looking for models of folks aging with grace and style and goofiness too!
Love me some Drew.