The entertainment industry is a tough place to crack, and it is even more difficult to maintain any sort of footing. All it takes is one false move for a person to miss out on landing work for years. Sure, some people can overcome a huge flop or even the child star label, but most simply disappear.
Drew Barrymore rose to fame as a child star from a legendary acting family, but things cooled off considerably for her. Eventually, she landed a role in a 90s classic and never looked back. She has gone on to conquer the big screen with romantic comedies and the small screen with an underrated series on Netflix.
Let’s see which movie changed the game for Drew Barrymore.
She Was A Child Star Before Things Slowed Down
There are a number of different ways that people can break into the entertainment industry, and one sure-fire way of gaining some traction is to come from a legendary acting family. This was precisely the case for Drew Barrymore, who comes from a long lineage of famous actors, back when she started appearing in successful projects as a kid.
The first huge break that Drew Barrymore got in the entertainment industry was by landing a prominent role in the film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which just so happened to be directed by her godfather, Steven Spielberg. Upon its release, E.T. would go on to be the highest-grossing film of all time until its record was conquered by Jurassic Park in 1993.
Despite the success that she found as a child actor, things throughout the rest of the 1980s and the early part of the 1990s would begin to taper off in terms of successful projects. Yes, she was remaining busy and acting consistently, but she was coming nowhere close to finding the same type of success that she had found with E.T.
As the middle part of the 1990s rolled around, people were beginning to wonder when Barrymore would have her next major breakout role. Low and behold, the middle part of the decade would completely revitalize her career and kick off everything that she has going on to accomplish.
Scream Changed Everything
Few former child stars will ever be granted the luxury of continuing to land roles in major projects after their fame dwindles, as Hollywood is a place that is always more than happy to find the next big thing in favor of pushing former stars aside. Drew Barrymore, however, was able to overcome this and start landing major roles in the middle of the 90s that flipped the script on her career.
She had a minor role in 1995s Batman Forever, which was a hit at the box office. However, it would be in 1996’s Scream that Barrymore would completely revitalize everything. That film was a complete and total game-changer for the genre, and Barrymore, despite not being the star of the film, was a memorable piece of the puzzle. Suddenly, the actress was a hit once more and she took full advantage of this newfound mainstream interest.
Things might have started off a little slowly in 1997, but once 1998 rolled around, Drew Barrymore would suddenly developed into a major star.
She Has Had A Successful Career
Back in 1998, just two years after the monumental success of Scream, Drew Barrymore landed starring roles in The Wedding Singer and in Ever After, both of which were successful films that took her newfound success to another level. Suddenly, she was a major player on the big screen and had fully shaken the former child star stigma that had followed her since the 80s.
Romantic comedies became Barrymore’s bread and butter for years, and while she did take part in other projects, her work in movies like Never Been Kissed, 50 First Dates, and Fever Pitch helped her conquer the genre. Lest we forget about her turn as an action star in the successful Charlie’s Angels franchise.
Over the years, Barrymore has continued to add to her legacy. While she has done most of her work on the big screen, her starring role in Santa Clarita Diet was a major success that showed what she was capable of as the star of a television series. The series was cancelled prematurely, and fans would love nothing more than to see Barrymore get the chance to star on the show for another season.
Though it took some time to find her footing once more, Drew Barrymore’s appearance in Scream revitalized her career on the big screen and helped her become a huge star during the 90s.