- Film And TV
- 04 Oct 18
We can hear shouts of "fake news" from the White House.
A bizarre supposed interview with actress Drew Barrymore featured in EgyptAir's in-flight magazine Horus has gone viral after being noticed and subsequently tweeted out by journalist Adam Baron.
The feature, which centres around the star's parenthood and by extension the sacrifices she made to her acting career to focus upon it, is laden with grammatical faults and curious statements that have been attributed to Barrymore.
This interview with Drew Barrymore in the Egypt Air in flight magazine is, umm, surreal. pic.twitter.com/fN3lNHXbL0
— Adam Baron (@adammbaron) October 2, 2018
The piece opens with its given author, Aida Takla O'Reilly, making observations and criticisms of the former E.T. star's personal life and past relationships, blaming her supposed lack of a male role model (after the divorce of her parents) for her "failed relationships" after also claiming that:
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"Despite being unstable in her relationships most of her life, despite the several unsuccessful marriages and despite the busy life of stardom that dominated her life for several years; the beautiful American Hollywood actress Drew Barrymore has recently decided to temporary [sic] take an unlimited vacation to play her most crucial role as a mother."
Thereafter, the article moves onto the topics of motherhood and gender equality, attaching other quotes to Barrymore about how she doesn't subscribe to some conventional parenting models, doesn't consult psychologists and instead is focused on nurturing her children's minds "as well as their small bodies".
The interviewer commends the actress for returning to her "previous graceful body" after the birth of her daughter, before quoting the Charlie's Angels star as saying "I feel overwhelmed when someone tells me that I have regained my image and managed to lose that extra weight."
"However, I find this a great opportunity to encourage every woman who is overweight to work on regaining her beauty and body, especially that it is not as hard as one may think."
In a further unusual sequence of events, EgyptAir have doubled-down on the veracity of the piece in response to a spokesperson for Drew Barrymore insisting that she didn't participate in the interview.
Dear sir, this a professional magazine interview conducted by Dr. Aida Tekla Former president of the HFPA (Hollywood Foreign Press Association) and one of the voting members of the Golden Globes.
— EGYPTAIR (@EGYPTAIR) October 3, 2018
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In a series of tweets published from an unverified Twitter account posing as Takla O'Reilly, the supposed author also defended her article, insisting that despite there being edits made by the publication the interview was "genuine" and "far from fake". In addition, reports to this already baffling story have since have suggested that O'Reilly has claimed she did not write the article's introduction, despite being listed as the author.
In what is likely the most plausible explanation, Barrymore's spokesperson suggested that she didn't sit down for an interview with the magazine, rather that the quotes were taken from a press conference and proceeded to become lost in translation.