Drew Barrymore’s Kids: Everything To Know About Her Rarely Seen Daughters
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Drew Barrymore shares daughters Olive and Frankie with ex-husband Will Kopelman. Here’s what to know about the actress’ kids after she dropped out of hosting the MTV Movie Awards on May 7!
- Drew Barrymore is an actress and talk show host known for her work in Charlie’s Angels, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and more.
- She is a proud mother to two children.
- The starlet is divorced from her children’s father, Will Kopelman.
- Drew dropped out of hosting the MTV Movie Awards on May 7, 2023.
Drew Barrymore began her career in the 1980s as a child star, capturing the hearts of film-goers with her role as Gertie in Steven Spielberg’s 1982 adventure sci-fi film E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. The actress has since gone on to star in a series of other cult classic films, including Scream, Never Been Kissed, and Whip It. Now 48, Drew’s life has only flourished after childhood obstacles, including drug and alcohol addiction. The actress now headlines her own CBS talk show The Drew Barrymore Show and runs a lifestyle empire, with her own home line Drew Barrymore Flower Home, and her own magazine, DREW.
And Drew was set to put the cherry on top of her success by hosting the 2023 MTV Movie Awards, but she dropped out in support for the Writers Guild of America strike, which is seeking an overhaul in compensation for streaming residuals. “I have listened to the writers, and in order to truly respect them, I will pivot from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards live in solidarity with the strike,” the actress, 48, said in a statement, per Variety. ” The star then thanked MTV for their partnership and revealed she will be returning to host the show next year. She also shared a sweet message about missing out on her Instagram (above).
Another gig the actress is proud of is mom. Drew shares two daughters, Olive, 10, and Frankie, 9, with ex-husband Will Kopelman, whom she split from in 2016 after four years of marriage. Drew is notoriously private when it comes to her children, rarely sharing snapshots of the two on Instagram. (When she does, their faces are not shown.) The actress explained her decision to keep her daughters out of the spotlight in an interview with PEOPLE in Sept. 2020. “I started [in this industry] when I was in diapers,” she said. “At 13, it was that sad sob story.”
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“And then I picked myself back up. I’ve been married, I’ve gotten divorced, I’ve raised myself, for better or worse,” Drew continued. “I have these two girls who are my entire universe. And it has all been out there.” While her life is “all on the table,” Drew explained her daughters are not due to her own life experiences. “I’m not selling my brand on my kids. I won’t do it,” she said. “But to ignore that part of my life would make me an automaton. So it’s really inventive to figure out how to bring them into the omelet and fold it in, in a way that feels appropriate for me.”
Learn more about what Drew has shared about her daughters below!
Olive Barrymore Kopelman
Drew welcomed her firstborn and eldest daughter Olive in 2012. Now 10, Olive made a cameo via voiceover in her mom’s Instagram post to celebrate the launch of Drew’s beauty line Flower Beauty. In the December 2020 post, Drew and Olive visit a local CVS and the actress asked her daughter what to say in her video. Olive advised her mom to let her followers know that the collection is “the most beautiful collection I’ve ever seen.” Drew thanked her daughter and also revealed her sweet nicknaming, saying, “Thank you, Bear.”
In an interview with PEOPLE in 2019, Drew revealed that both Olive and Frankie are “total performers” and just might take after her own career — something that admittedly scared her at first. “When I first had my kids, I think I was so obsessed with doing everything differently with them, I almost thought that acting was some calling from the devil,” she said. “I was thinking, ‘My daughters will never be actors! God, no!’ And then I’m, like, wait, it’s a great family trade. I’m a Barrymore. My family has been doing this for hundreds and hundreds of years, and multiple generations.”
She added that Olive is aware of her preference for her to wait until she is older to try out a potential career in Hollywood. “Olive knows that I would prefer she wait until she’s 18, and then it’s really her life and her decision,” Drew continued. “I think there’s a way to give them a normal childhood that’s totally protected, and yet feed their love of how much they love to express themselves. And when they were first born, I just didn’t know how to rationalize it. Now, I do.”
Most recently, Drew took to Instagram to share a throwback baby photo of Olive in honor of her 10th birthday on Sept. 26, 2022. “Happy 10th birthday Olive … my how you have grown. Today you are double digits. Today we get your ears pierced. Today is the start of many things. I didn’t know a love like I have for you and your sister Frankie,” her emotional caption began. “The greatest one I will ever know. It takes the top spot in my heart. You are my priorities. And I am so proud to be your mom. Best thing i have ever done with my life or will ever do with my life! Happy tenth birthday. Is it ok if I always see you as my baby?! My teeny tiny little marvel ????”
Frankie Barrymore Kopelman
Drew welcomed her second daughter Frankie in 2014. Now 9, Frankie was born on Earth Day, as evidenced in a sweet animated segment shared on The Drew Barrymore Show this April for the annual event. Drew shared an animated video of a cat on a bike voiced by her youngest, who called on her mom’s viewers to protect the planet. “Hi everyone, my name is Frankie Barrymore Kopelman, and guess what? Earth Day is my birthday!” she narrates, adding that her birthday wish is for viewers “to help our planet.” Frankie offered some tips, too: “You could ride a bike, plant a tree, recycle some plastic, or hug a bee.”
For Drew’s birthday show in February, too, Frankie and her big sister starred in an animated clip of them providing narration as cats as they read their mom a birthday poem. “We love you more than squirrels and pearls, or eating cheese in the breeze,” Frankie said, adding that Drew was “the best mom in the world.” In conversation with her Music and Lyrics co-star Hugh Grant that same month for the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Drew revealed that Frankie and her big sis do not enjoy her films at all, including Never Been Kissed, 50 First Dates, and even E.T. “They did not like ‘E.T.’ at all,” she said to a shocked Hugh. “They’re just not up for it. Nope.” Hugh joked in response, “I’m sorry you have two immensely damaged children like that. I love all those films!”
Most recently, Frankie’s dad, Will, took to Instagram on Apr. 22, 2023, to wish her a happy birthday and shared a series of rare photos of her at the park. “Every year on her birthday, pictures with the cherry blossoms. We love you so much Frankie, HBD! They bloom for you…,” he captioned the sweet carousel of photos. He also shared a photo of his pregnant wife, Alexandra Michler, with the girls on Feb. 11, 2023, after they told his daughters they would soon have a baby brother.