Drew Barrymore: Women Can’t Have It All & It ‘Sucks’

Drew Barrymore is an accomplished actress, producer and director, so when the bubbly star became a wife and mom last year, she thought she’d truly have it all.

However, the multi-hyphenate says the idea that women can successfully give their all to a business while being the spouse and mother they’d like to be is a disappointing myth.

“I can’t and I don’t [have it all],” she said at Lucky’s Fashion and Beauty Blog Conference Thursday in Los Angeles, according to People. “It sucks when you’ve worked really hard for certain things and you have to give them up because you know that you’re going to miss out on your child’s upbringing, or you realize that your relationship has suffered.”

For Drew, who gave birth to daughter Olive in October after marrying now-husband Will Kopelman in June, the first thing she’s had to give up is directing.

“I can’t direct right now because I would miss out on my daughter. It was heartbreaking to let it go, but it was a clear choice,” she said. “I was raised in that generation of women can have it all, and I don’t think you can. I think some things fall off the table.

“The good news is, what does stay on the table becomes much more in focus and much more important,” she added.

One thing that’s helped Drew be able to continue to stay involved in her multiple businesses over the past few months is the “work-at-home component,” which the actress calls “brilliant.”

When she is forced to leave Olive to get work done, she admits she feels guilty.

“I feel guilty all the time — but you combat it by being a superhero,” says Barrymore. “When you go out there in the world you have to remember, ‘I’m doing the best I can, I’m doing it for them, and I’m going to be there for them too. I’m just going to figure out the balance.’”

— Erin O’Sullivan