Drew Barrymore was there for Whitney Cummings when it mattered most.
The comedian revealed that her decision to join Drew on Hollywood Squares, despite her battle with postpartum depression after welcoming her son, was inspired by the Charlie’s Angels star.
“I was in very deep throws of postpartum depression, and I wasn’t doing any TV or anything,” Whitney said on The Drew Barrymore Show Jan. 16. “I didn’t feel funny, and I felt like my brain is broken with the kid now. I’m just not funny anymore.”
“And they were like, ‘it’s Drew,’” she continued, “and I was like, ‘I’m just going to do it. I’ll figure it out if I need to leave, I’ll leave she’ll understand.’ And it like snapped me out of it. It really helped me a lot.”
Whitney—who was one of the many stars who appeared on the show’s revival—welcomed her son in December 2023 and credited Drew for making it a "safe space."
“I couldn’t remember anything I was so scared,” Whitney shared. “I’m not lovable, I’m not valuable to anyone. I was like, ‘What if I do Hollywood Squares and I’m not quick and I’m not fast?’ and I felt safe cause it was you. I knew even if I did suck, we would make it funny and we would figure it out. And I was safe enough to.”
“I found the pressure I was putting on myself to be who I used to be,” she said. “That was really blocking me.”
Drew—who shares daughters Olive, 12, and Frankie, 10—with ex-husband Will Kopelman admitted that she knew firsthand how the experience returning to work after having kids felt.
“I’m so glad you said that,” Drew told Whitney. "I felt so confused in the most profound and beautiful ways after I had my kids. I didn't know who I was supposed to be, and so I didn't know how to work. I felt like I didn't necessarily relate to my friends the same way anymore."
In October, Drew got candid with an audience member about her experience as a mother of two who dealt with postpartum depression.
“When I had my second baby, I called my doctor and I said, ‘I have never felt more euphoria in my life. I want to say joy to the world I understand the meaning of life. It only took the second child to come out and now I know the meaning of life.’ And the way he listened to me, he knew that I was going to come back down to reality. I did a week or two later, and then I think I hit a pretty heavy dose of postpartum depression, and everything got very real.”
“And I realized that my heart grew bigger but so did my responsibilities and my worries,” she continued. “Being able to be brave enough and be human and show your feelings will allow your kid to know it’s okay to feel their feelings.”