Drea Uncensored
From Emmy Winning Actress to Hollywood Outcast: A Backyard Discussion About Political Dissonance With Drea de Matteo
“I HAVE NO PLACE NOW. I TRIED TO ALIGN MYSELF WITH SOME OF THE CONSERVATIVE GROUPS BECAUSE I DON’T AGREE WITH HOW FAR MY OWN PEOPLE HAVE GONE”
Anyone who had a TV set at the turn of the century will recall the anticipation of Sunday night, waiting for the next episode of The Sopranos to air. It was the last time my whole family gathered together in my mother's den to watch a show. Each week, more friends would join our viewing, until there wasn't an empty seat on the floor by the end of the season. We were captivated those Sunday nights, equally horrified and fascinated by what might befall the Soprano family next. Thanks to the streaming era, our kids are just as obsessed with Tony's sessions with Dr. Melfi as we were (and who are we to tell them to turn it off when we’re quoting the episode from the doorway?).
In a show filled with standout talents, Drea de Matteo's portrayal of Adriana La Cerva, Christopher's loyal, long-suffering girlfriend, provided one of the few voices of reason among the cut-throat barbarians that surrounded her. Drea embodied the role with a brilliant blend of mob savvy, sultry sass, and undeniable charisma, with fierce but feminine embrace. She was intelligent, sexy, edgy, and glamorous. Who can forget the signature skin-hugging leopard prints, short tennis skirts, bold makeup, and stacks upon stacks of gold jewelry?
Let us not forget it was Drea in that role who set the standards for the mob boss aesthetic currently fetishized by Gen Z on TikTok.
Drea earned an Emmy for her efforts, and after the iconic show concluded, she enjoyed successful roles on Joey, Sons of Anarchy, Desperate Housewives, and Shades of Blue. In an industry where young actresses aren't guaranteed staying power with or without awards, she carved out a decades-long career of consistent work that few of her peers have managed to match.
Then the pandemic struck.
Like most actors, Drea faced the pressure of getting vaccinated or risking her job (majority of Hollywood sets required a Covid vaccine across the board — except for those A-listers who played by different rules). Due to her misgivings about the vaccine, she boldly chose the latter. Subsequently, work dried up, her long time agent fired her without a phone call, and she found herself flat broke after years of lucrative work and steady income.
A haunting home tour a la MTV ‘Cribs’ — which prompted Denise to buy me my very own punching bag for Christmas
Back in December, a couple of weeks before Christmas, I spent an afternoon getting to know (and love) Drea de Matteo amidst the wooded backdrop of her Spanish-style Hollywood Hills home. Mutual friends kept insisting we had much in common, namely political discord. Like many of us, Drea underwent a substantial soul shift during the pandemic that challenged some of her core beliefs. Her disconnect was significantly more alienating because of the industry that employed her. Hollywood, as we know, is dominated by a liberal stronghold. Questioning the status quo is a quick way to derail your ambitions and shred your reputation. Nothing gets you exiled faster than a vocal conservative viewpoint in the land of make-believe.
She was punished for outwardly rejecting the mandates and then shamed when financial struggles led her to OnlyFans. Her decisions made her an easy target in Hollywood and a walking taboo on the right.
And while Drea says she doesn't like to label her political views these days, it's clear that she was previously left-leaning given her progressive stance on abortion, drugs, and more. She still recoils at how her fellow liberals, particularly Hollywood peers, reacted to the pandemic.
Drea was in forbearance to help with mortgage repayments, but couldn’t pay what was owed. She joined Only Fans in August and announced the news on her Instagram with a nude photo. "I wasn't going to sit around and wait for my manager or for somebody to try and land me a job that I needed to get in order to take care of what needed to be taken care of. I was losing my home.”
"Things have changed in the last three years. My kids have always been my No. 1 focus. Had I known that I could work out of my closet my whole life, I never would have believed. … I know that might sound crazy and might sound somewhat lazy, but I am a very big supporter of stay-at-home moms and women who really love to raise their children. I balanced it all, and I've done it all.
But I’m 51. I didn't know this was going to have to be a change of life, you know, all of a sudden that during a time I'm supposed to be relaxing a little bit, that I would have to switch careers and figure new things out because my own industry thinks I'm, you know, a savage." — FOX
Throughout the afternoon, Drea was refreshingly unguarded in conversation — the kind of woman I take to and trust right away. Her music selections were of course fabulous. She was up for answering anything asked. And in her kitchen, during a late lunch break, she led us to graze a lavishly arranged meat and cheese spread laid out on her island counter. We were christened by slices of her favorite Italian salami. She introduced us to friends and family that appeared throughout the day, served us shots of top-shelf tequila, told us where to go to get her hair extensions, and let me snoop around the books in her bedroom where the Real Anthony Fauci sat atop a stack next to her bedside. No, she didn’t finish it. Neither did I. But by placing our hands on the cover we both willed the wisdom to seep in enough to at least pretend we had.
In confession mode, she revealed that her showbiz peers further rejected her after she expressed big support for Tucker Carlson and overall disdain for mainstream media outlets. She thinks today's true renegades hail from the right, not the left — that liberals, in their blatant worship of the government, have lost their punk rock edge. "These days you have to be a conservative in order to be someone who fights for freedom, to emulate the old hippie movement," she said. She has also sharply turned on Neil Young for his betrayal of the working man.
On the whole, Drea is candid, foul-mouthed, and hilarious in discussion. Her children, Alabama Gypsyrose and Waylon Albert "Blackjack" Jennings, who wandered in and out of frame over the course of the afternoon, notably resemble their infamous grandfather, country western icon Waylon Jennings. She is the most engaged and attentive mother. More than a few times she paused to ask what they thought about various topics we were discussing. Tendencies I am prone to myself as a mother with kids old enough to be interested in current issues.
When I recorded our conversation, I didn't anticipate sharing it in full. I figured I'd splice it into shorter vignettes to highlight a full-length written interview but when I sat down and listened to the raw dialogue, I saw more value in authentic discourse. It’s what's missing in media. We have had enough of the overly sanitized, cautiously produced features.
In the longer-form video (to be shared as a follow up) her struggle reflects the complexities many of us have faced when our political allegiance and personal convictions clash. As you know, I have been very transparent about my break from the left, and Drea hasn't folded or apologized for her gradual divorce from it either.
These days, she is a woman navigating an industry deeply rooted in liberalism, but her willingness to question the prevailing ideology sets her apart. She is unapologetic in this new phase but still grapples with the reality many of us find ourselves in, where neither the right nor the left fully aligns with our beliefs. Settling into political limbo means we reject the rigid reins of dogma on both sides.
What I found most endearing, though, about Drea’s journey was learning that her daughter's unexpected dive into conservative politics is what sparked a deeper exploration of her own beliefs. As parents, we often find ourselves learning and evolving thanks to our children. Especially as they get older and start questioning the world with fresh perspective. In this instance, her daughter's interests ignited profound introspection, prompting Drea to reevaluate her convictions and reconsider viewpoints outside the liberal framework she was raised in. For me, it is a poignant reminder of the transformative power of familial influence and the invaluable lessons that can be gleaned from our children's unexpected interests and perspectives if we embrace them as valued contribution to the conversation.
But they don't get the credit for loving The Sopranos first — that's ours forever.
On how her daughter’s questions ignited self reflection
"I guess you could say I was a bad girl because I did not follow the rules a couple of years ago. I don't want to be at the mercy of mandates or strike or anything like that ever again.” — FOX
“With all of the Conservatives out there in the last three years, it was the only safe place to go and find some semblance of truth for me. I felt more aligned with a lot of the things they were talking about. However, there are some social issues that I would still stick to that were my old school issues, but never condemning someone else for having a different opinion about something. That’s something that I couldn’t understand that was happening during the Trump administration and then it got worse, in my opinion, in the Biden administration,” de Matteo stated.
“I really do think that the left is way more just angry. This is supposed to be the hippies and the people that really do care about equality and inclusivity, and then all of a sudden they are the ones shutting everything down, shutting everyone out, condemning freedom of speech, condemning everything.”
“I cannot tell you how fucking fast I stopped listening to Neil Young … at that time [Rogan] was gathering more information,” she said of efforts led by Young to deplatform the comedian.
“Who the fuck do you think you are, old man? Old man, take a look at your mother fucking life now,” she added, quoting one of his classic hits.
“And he’s Canadian, and these truckers have a convoy lined up and you’re not fighting for the average man right now?” — Hollywood in Toto
"I know some people have said some nasty things about me having joined OnlyFans. But, you know, the way we see it in this house is mommy's a warrior, not accepting defeat. So, when people make nasty comments about why I would have done that, my response is, 'Damn straight, I hope you're never in the f---ing position I'm in. I take care of an entire family and a lot of other people who depend on me."
In the workspace dedicated to the ULTRAFREE brand she created with her love Robby Staebler of All Them Witches (more on that in follow up)
AHEAD: PT. 2 (FOR PAID SUBSCRIBERS) — A LONG UNEDITED CONVERSATION WITH DREA AND ROBBY
“her willingness to question the prevailing ideology sets her apart. She is unapologetic in this new phase but still grapples with the reality many of us find ourselves in, where neither the right nor the left fully aligns with our beliefs. Settling into political limbo means we reject the rigid reins of dogma on both sides.”
Never have a I ever found a paragraph that reflects my political feelings more. She is so many of us.
Wonderful article!
I met Drea once because our kids went to the same school. She was so down to earth and friendly. It's unbelievable to me that she is one of only a handful of people in Hollywood to go against the grain. I always thought of artists as being critical thinkers. Wow was I wrong. It does take courage so bravo Drea and bravo Jessica for continuing to spread the word. People are starting to wake up because of people like you two! Sabrinalabow.substack.com