Drew Barrymore and her co-star in the new movie Miss You Already, Australian actress Toni Collette, aren’t just best of friends on the big screen. Their real-life friendship appears to be strong and vibrant as well.
According to the Daily Mail, Drew Barrymore and Toni held hands as they strolled along the red carpet for the Australian première of their new flick, held at the State Theatre in Sydney on Wednesday night. The event was also a fundraiser for the National Breast Cancer Foundation in Australia, according to the Australian.
[Photo from Getty Images / Lisa Maree Williams]Miss You Already features Drew Barrymore and Toni Collette as best friends — one who ends up with cancer (Toni’s character, Milly), and the other becoming pregnant after trying over and over (Drew’s character, Jess). Toni sums up the film, once again in the Australian.
“People could assume this to be a chick flick but it is not just that. It is about life, death, love, loss and everything between. Friendship is so strong and so bonding and so powerful and it is a genderless love really so when people mention it in the same breath as Beaches, we both get a little excited.”
In the Sydney Morning Herald, Drew Barrymore laid it out on the line, confronting the question about whether or not Miss You Already is a chick-flick with a simple, straightforward statement.
“We’ve made a film by women for women, about women.”
The original story, titled Goodbye, was a radio play written by Morwenna Banks, and the movie is directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Along with Collette and Drew Barrymore, this indeed is a film by, for, and about women.
Although Drew Barrymore and Toni had met before, introduced by a mutual friend, this is the first time they had a chance to work together, and it appears that the experience was excellent for all parties involved. Collette told the Australian how she felt being part of the cast.
“It was one of the best jobs of my entire life and the fact that it affects so many people and that the film is actually a very positive, unifying experience, that is such a wonderful thing.”
[Photo from E-One Entertainment ‘Miss You Already’ Facebook page]
Drew Barrymore was asked by Toni to be part of the project by writing her a letter, as reported by Woman’s Day.
“I did just have a baby, it was a very inconvenient time but I just fell love with this thing. This film is about how you loved someone. The point of this is to hold on tight to people that you love.”
Drew Barrymore has stated that one of the inspirations for her being part of Miss You Already was her two daughters, as a way to deal with a difficult subject for both her and them. Both Toni and Drew found their characters and the topic challenging because they are parents.
Saw miss you already tonight truly inspiring and fabulous portrayal of how cancer affects family and friends @DrewBarrymore@dominiccoop
And, clearly, emotions are still raw. When Sarah Thomas of the Sydney Morning Telegraph interviewed Collette and Barrymore, she reports that all three ended up in tears, discussing how the movie deals with the challenges of cancer and the toll it can take on the lives of both the patient and those around them.
The fact that Drew and Toni are such good friends, who keep in touch constantly, and travel all over the world together, helped make filming such a challenging movie much easier, and more enjoyable.
“We got really lucky. I don’t think any of this would have worked if we hadn’t; if one of us was storming off to our trailer.”
Before the big premier of Miss You Already, Toni took her good friend Drew Barrymore on a tour of her home town of Sydney, hitting a restaurant and doing some shopping (Barrymore bought a grey cardigan, FYI) before heading to a hotel to prepare the evening’s festivities.
Now that the film has gotten its big Australian première, Miss You Already, starring Toni Collette and Drew Barrymore, hits theaters in North America on November 6.
