Did Drew Barrymore quash her own comedy flick?

With Jon Stewart prepping to host The Daily Show and Drew Barrymore showing off Ever After's $64 million glass slipper, whatever happened to their ensemble comedy Wishful Thinking? Way back in October 1995, first-time writer-director Adam Park finished shooting the New Yorkers-in-lust romp. Months passed, screenings went poorly, and Miramax never set a release date, even after several reshoots. Finally, the studio opted to send the movie straight to video next spring.

Park bears no grudge against Miramax ("They made a business decision," he says) but suggests that Barrymore's displeasure helped trap Wishful Thinking on the island of misfit movies. "She was just very negative," he says. "I don't know how much of an impact that had on Miramax, but it couldn't have been good, because Drew's a very powerful person right now and they don't want to upset her."

Indeed, the actress has publicly bad-mouthed the film, claiming she made it in exchange for a role in Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You (also released by Miramax). A studio spokesman and Barrymore's publicist strongly deny that she quashed Wishful Thinking. People familiar with the project say it fell victim to a natural fate. "If this was a good movie," says one, "it would've been released."