Drew Barrymore Raising Her Stature As Powerful Producer In Hollywood

Drew Barrymore has been on the big screen since she was a toddler, and has the bloodlines of a proper actress, but in recent years the 39-year-old has instead shifted her efforts behind the camera.

Barrymore, who most recently appeared on-screen opposite Adam Sandler in Blended, has become something of a powerful producer in Hollywood with a string of successful movies and television shows under her belt. Drew first made the jump to producer in the 1999 movie Never Been Kissed, which she also starred in, and afterward was at the helm for a number of successful movies.

Drew served as executive producer for the 2001 cult hit Donnie Darko, and later for the romantic comedy He’s Just Not That Into You.

Barrymore also produced a number of television series, including Charlie’s Angels, Tough Love, and Knife Fight.

Her latest effort, How To Be Single, just snagged Christian Ditter as a director.

Variety commented on the movie:

[Novelist Liz] Tuccillo, a former Sex and the City story editor, centered How to Be Single on a 38-year-old woman living in New York and searching for love. Marc Silverstein and Abby Kohn have penned the adaption with Dana Fox working on the latest draft.

The story suggests that it is not our relationships, but our single times in between, that truly define us. The film will look at relatable issues such as online dating, how long to wait before having children, when to get married, blind dating, casual sex and the fear of commitment.

While she’s becoming a powerful Hollywood exec, Drew Barrymore is increasingly busy at home. She just gave birth to her second child, Frankie, earlier this year.

“I knew that I have two kids to take care of now and just kicked my own butt to get back into the swing of things immediately,” she told People magazine, adding that there are challenges in the split schedules of her little girls.

“They’re awake and asleep at different times, or awake at the same time,” she said. “It’s a juggling act a little bit.”

Barrymore told Entertainment Weekly earlier this year that finding a balance is key to being a successful producer and mom.

She said:

“Most of my life I’ve just worked. Life has been so in the backseat that it’s always been about film or a film production, producing, acting, every little detail that goes into filmmaking. [My work has ] slowed down because I didn’t know honestly how to have a life under those circumstances. I mean, when you’re on a film, you’re out in the middle of nowhere working 18 hours a day and it’s really hard to have a life. I really commend people who seem to balance it. I’m not sure how they do because I wasn’t. Now that I’ve carved out a little more time for myself in life, I find that the passion and the interest and the discussions have come much more in the center.”

The approach has worked well for Drew Barrymore. She now has a reputation as one of the most actor-friendly producers, so much that Scarlett Johansson (star of He’s Just Not That Into You) raved about working with her.