Drew Barrymore Reflects On Her Regrets About Posing For A 1995 Playboy Cover

The US actress and talk show host Drew Barrymore, 49, has published an open letter about her childhood and being a parent in an Instagram post. Her candid essay reveals her difficulties with managing fame as a child and its effect on her parenting style today.

In a heartfelt post, Barrymore opens up about her unconventional childhood, marked by her early exposure to adult environments and the lack of boundaries. She recalls her experience posing for Playboy magazine in 1995, a decision she made in her early 20s.

At the time, she viewed it as an artistic expression, never anticipating the permanence of the internet. “I thought it would be a magazine that was unlikely to resurface because it was paper,” Barrymore writes, adding, “I never knew there would be an internet. I didn’t know so many things.”

Barrymore’s Vigilante Care As A Mother

Barrymore became famous as a child star in E.T. (1982) – the Extra-Terrestrial – and talks of feeling ashamed when she found herself caught up with people experiencing hedonism leading to feelings of shame. “We, as kids, are not meant to see these images,” she reflects.

Barrymore is exceptionally aware of what might happen to her children and is vigilant about keeping those dangers at bay.

Barrymore has two girls, Olive, 12, and Frankie, 10, with her ex-husband Will Kopelman. She wants to shield them from the overwhelming access to information and content that defines life in the digital age.

“Kids are not supposed to be exposed to this much,” she emphasizes. “Kids are supposed to be protected. Kids are supposed to hear NO.”

She describes how she felt she had to give her oldest daughter a smartphone on her 11th birthday, only to watch as it soon became the heart and lifeline of her child’s existence.

Barrymore’s Decision On Smartphones For Her Kids

At the end of the day, Barrymore has decided that her kids are just ‘not ready’ for something as tech-heavy, instead reinforcing her commitment to becoming the parent she needed during her tumultuous youth.

Barrymore also touches on the dangers of social media and group texts, warning of the toxic environments children can be exposed to online.

Drawing from her own experiences of public scrutiny as a young teenager, she emphasizes the importance of guiding and protecting children in an era where their mistakes can be magnified and immortalized on the internet.

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Recalling The Past And Expressing Gratefulness For The Now

At 14, Barrymore was emancipated, moved into her first apartment, and started life on her own. There was no one there to take care of her, and she was forced into self-sufficiency.

Barrymore tried to empathize with her mom, who was criticized for allowing her daughter to spiral out of control. “I have so much empathy for her now, because I am a mother,” Barrymore writes. “And none of us is perfect.”

But she remained grateful for the path she trod, saying, “we all fall and rise. Over and over. Life’s roller coaster. And what a beautiful ride it is,” she concludes, embracing the ups and downs of life with a resilient and hopeful spirit.

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