Ethan Hawke Makes ’90s Crush Confession to Drew Barrymore: ‘I Wanted It to Happen’

Ethan Hawke confessed to Drew Barrymore that he contemplated dating her in the ’90s, admitting he didn’t make a move as he had “wanted it to happen organically.”The “Reality Bites” and “The Lowdown” star stopped by “The Drew Barrymore Show” on Friday, where the two ’90s icons discussed how they never got a chance to meet until now. “I don’t think I can remember a time in my life when I was not aware of you,” Hawke said, prompting Barrymore to reveal she felt the same way. “What I can’t believe is that we never dated, you know?” he added. As the audience erupted into laughter and applause, Barrymore chimed in with, “Where were you?! Where were you, Ethan?” Barrymore then alluded to Hawke’s heartthrob status in the ’90s, quipping, “What me and every other girl on the planet wouldn’t have given to date you. Where the hell were you?” Here’s where Hawke confessed that, had the two industry veterans crossed paths sooner, it could’ve happened. “There was many a night, when I would — it must have been circa the ’90s — I’d be going to a party, and I’d think, ‘Maybe Drew will be there,’” Hawke told Barrymore, who responded by throwing herself back on her talk show’s couch. “Where were you?” she asked again before asking more follow-up questions. “Why didn’t you call me? We still had phones back then.” Hawke’s answer? “You know, I like to play it cool,” he explained. “I wanted it to happen organically. I thought, you know, something magical would happen.” Barrymore then playfully reprimanded Hawke for playing it cool, countering with, “And look what happened. Nothing!” Watch the exchange below. Though Hawke and Barrymore never became a romantic item, the two stars had plenty of high-profile relationships throughout the ’90s and onward. Barrymore was married three times, the first time to bar owner Jeremy Thomas in 1994, the second time to comedian Tom Green in 2001 and the third time to art consultant Will Kopelman in 2012. Barrymore and Kopelman, who divorced in 2016, share daughters Olive and Frankie together. As for Hawke, he notably married actress Uma Thurman in 1998, but the couple split in 2005 after welcoming kids Maya and Levon. He remarried in 2008, wedding former nanny Ryan Shawhughes, who he shares daughters Clementine and Indiana with.