Drew Barrymore is opening up about her "painful" divorce from Will Kopelman after nearly four years of marriage.
On Thursday, the 46-year-old actress admitted during an interview with award-winning rapper and rocker Machine Gun Kelly that she ended up seeking mental health support in wake of the 2016 split.
"I went through a really painful divorce, and I wasn't doing very well," Barrymore shared in a sneak peek of the full interview, which airs Friday. The topic came about when Machine Gun Kelly spoke about dealing with his own mental health obstacles.
"I had these two kids I had to fight for, and I needed help," Barrymore said. "So I started reaching out to different people and eventually I made some big sweeping changes in my life. I got on a whole new track. Not back on track, but a whole new one that I helped build."
Speaking with "CBS This Morning" on Thursday, Barrymore explained that the conversation with Machine Gun Kelly took an unexpected turn, prompting her to speak about her divorce.
"We were just set to do an interview about his nail polish," she said, adding that she was "so surprised by his vulnerability," according to People. Barrymore admitted she usually kept her struggles private but that people were increasingly allowing themselves to be more vulnerable to each other.
"I wouldn't be surprised if there is a revolt against the perfection right now that we are all forced to see and feel through social media," she said. "We're in an impasse and a crux of a moment where talking about how we figure ourselves out, how we fix ourselves takes a journey and solutions. Most people do it in private."
In 2020, Barrymore also spoke candidly about her divorce during an interview with "Today," admitting that it took her several years to overcome it.
"At first ... I couldn't make sense of it," the "Charlie's Angels" star recalled. "And if I even spoke about it, I would've just become a blubbering — I really did not take divorce well. I took it really hard. Even now, I'm just like, Oh, it's such a painful thing."
Barrymore explained that after five years she was able to find the "strength, articulation, perspective, hindsight," and see everything they had gone right.
"Because when we were getting divorced, it felt like everything was just wrong," she added. "I think it applies to everyone who thinks that something will be forever and it's not."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.