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A 7-year-old Drew Barrymore made quite the entrance during Carson’s interview: "Did you rehearse..."

Barymore gushed, “You know what’s so wild when I look at that. My legs don’t touch the ground. Like we are all growing up together."

Drew Barrymore’s Hollywood journey is nothing short of legendary, but one particular moment from her childhood once resurfaced—her hilarious and slightly chaotic entrance on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson’ in 1982. At just seven years old, Barrymore, already a budding star thanks to ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,’ made a memorable debut that had both Carson and the audience in stitches. While entering the set, baby Barrymore slipped and had a fall. However, Carson, being a true gentleman, helped her to her seat and assured her that many adults have also had a fall and she should not be concerned about it. He tried to lighten the mood and remarked, “That’s a pretty funny entrance. Did you rehearse that?” To which Barrymore blushes and justifies, "It’s probably my shoes because they’re real slippery."

Further in the conversation, a young Barrymore, full of energy and charm, interacts with Carson in a way that only a precocious child star could. When Carson asked her to “give me a scream,” she enthusiastically complied, belting out an ear-piercing shriek that had the audience roaring with laughter. Carson, taken aback, asks, “That’s a good scream. Have you always been able to do that?” Barrymore then explained, “I practiced so much at home that I was able to do it. So the other day, I screamed my throat off. When I got home, I was sweating. I need to take a shower badly. I was filthy!”

As per People magazine, during a 2024 appearance on 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,’ Barrymore was in shock when Fallon played the throwback clip. Watching the clip, Barrymore was visibly emotional, shaking her head as she relived the moment. Fallon remarks, “What are you doing? Who is that person? It is so charming. That is so charming, that person. And look at what a great woman you’ve become. That little baby, come on.” Barrymore reflected on her journey, “You know what’s so wild when I look at that. My legs don’t touch the ground. Like we are all growing up together. I’m 49 years old and I’m like, I’m just growing up with everyone. And my legs touched the ground now!”

As per Mamamia, Barrymore’s childhood in the spotlight was anything but ordinary. Born into Hollywood royalty, she was pushed into fame at an early age, but the glamorous life came with a dark side. By eight, she had her first drink at a film wrap party. At ten, she was smoking marijuana with her mother’s friend. By twelve, she had moved on to cocaine. In the 2024 documentary ‘Child Star,’ Barrymore reflected on her troubled youth, telling Demi Lovato, "I used to get high with my mum's friend at like 10. And I thought she was so cool, she would give weed to me and her son. Having a 10-year-old daughter now. It's unfathomable. But that's just how I grew up.”

When Lovato suggested that a child shouldn’t bear full responsibility for such experiences, Barrymore agreed but maintained her sense of accountability. Her struggles led her to rehab at just 12 years old and later to a psychiatric facility at 13 when her mother deemed her uncontrollable. She shared, "I think there was plenty of my life where I was a human walking cautionary tale…I have done s**t no one knows I did, that is so crazy, that somehow nobody found out about and it's because we all had more anonymity before social media." After her release, she legally emancipated herself from her parents at 14, navigating an independent life that was far from easy.