The “Champagne Problems” actress explained that her whole life changed after she “stopped outsourcing my self-worth and my safety to everyone else.”

Minka Kelly tears up speaking to Drew Barrymore about their unique childhoods: ‘I had so many therapists’

The "Champagne Problems" actress explained that her whole life changed after she "stopped outsourcing my self-worth and my safety to everyone else."

By Emlyn Travis

Emlyn Travis is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2022. Her work has previously appeared on MTV News, Teen Vogue, and *NME*.

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on November 20, 2025 1:52 p.m. ET

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Minka Kelly tears up speaking with Drew Barrymore on 'The Drew Barrymore Show'. Credit:

The Drew Barrymore Show

Minka Kelly was well aware her Thursday visit to *The Drew Barrymore Show *was going to be an emotional one even before her interview began. **

The 45-year-old *Champagne Problems* actress entered the studio after a warm introduction from Drew Barrymore and immediately pulled her into a hug, telling the host, “You’re gonna make me cry already!” **

After settling down on the couch together, Barrymore explained that she and Kelly have been friends for a long time but were texting frequently after the release of Kelly's 2023 memoir, *Tell Me Everything*.

Drew Barrymore and Minka Kelly on 'The Drew Barrymore Show'.

The Drew Barrymore Show/Ash Bean

“The reason that for me — and I think we can all relate to so many different things — in our case, there was so much circumstances that were aligned: single moms who worked,” Barrymore explained. “My mom worked at the Troubadour and the Comedy Store around just tons of partying and hedonism and stuff. Your mom worked at Crazy Girls, the strip club.”

In the book, Kelly details her unique upbringing, which saw her mom, Maureen Kelly, work as an exotic dancer, a bartender, and take on several other jobs in order to provide for their family.

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Barrymore shared that, while reading the book, she could really relate to Kelly and what it felt like to go “behind the scenes” at these establishments at such a young age. **

“The crazy father who’s like, in and out,” Barrymore added, referencing Kelly’s dad — former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay — as well as her own once-estranged father, the late John Drew Barrymore. “I mean, is there anything we didn’t have in common growing up?” **

The* Never Been Kissed *actress noted that “once you’ve survived that, I think it creates such an amazing strength.” She continued, “You can be a victim and you can use it as a weakness and you can blame others. That is a choice. You can also make it your empowerment.” **

The statement seemed to strike a chord with Kelly. “I think the most important thing that I learned,” Barrymore began as the cameras cut over to Kelly fighting back tears, “is that I have this deeper understanding of… I had it wrong the whole time. I didn’t love myself.”**

A sniffling Kelly let out a sympathetic sound in response to Barrymore. **

“I kept trying to love outward. I kept trying to get love from other people,” the host continued. “And I didn’t know that loving myself or trying to trust myself was this goal that I didn’t even know I was trying to reach because I didn’t know it was the goal [at all].”

Drew Barrymore and Minka Kelly on 'The Drew Barrymore Show'.

The Drew Barrymore Show/Ash Bean

Kelly could relate. “As soon as I stopped outsourcing my self-worth and my safety to everyone else around me, things changed,” she said. “And it took a life coach to help me with that. Literally. I had so many therapists and that’s great — all of the therapies are wonderful — but it literally just took a friend who is just so much smarter than me in all the ways helping me to do things differently."**

She emphasized, “And actually teaching me how and what that means to love yourself and to stop outsourcing your safety to everyone else. I’m like, ‘What does that mean, love yourself? It sounds like such an abstract idea!’”

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“And reading your book, I got all of that,” Barrymore replied. “And It is such a beautiful journey.” **

Barrymore has often spoken about her unique upbringing on her talk show. Last month, she reflected on her two-year stay at a rehabilitation facility when she was 14 years old, calling it “the best thing that ever happened to me.” **

“I know that sounds wild, but it was encouragement to say your truths, to be brave, to find humor and heroism in your journey,” she said at the time. “And it’s the best thing that ever happened to me, honestly. And I hold a lot of it sacrosanct, but it wasn’t easy. It was hard as hell and I found that the tone that you brought to the show was true to a life experience when you gotta be broken and get fixed.”**

*The Drew Barrymore Show *airs weekdays on CBS.

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