Valerie Bertinelli is remembering her late ex-husband Eddie Van Halen as a “nice boy” despite his struggles with addiction.

The actress, who has become a regular on The Drew Barrymore Show, opened up this morning’s Drew’s News segment by asking, “Who doesn’t love a bad boy?”

Bertinelli joked that she was “married to one for a while,” referring to her 20+ year marriage with the rockstar, who died in 2020 of complications from throat cancer.

“Legend! I mean, Eddie Van Halen … He had such a big life. He was so loved,” host Drew Barrymore said, to which Bertinelli replied, “He actually didn’t. He had a very small life. It’s just that people projected a lot onto him because of his talent. But he really led a very small life.”

Ross Mathews asked the cookbook author what it was like being with a “rock and roll bad boy.”

“I gotta say I don’t understand what makes him a bad boy, because he wasn’t,” she admitted. “He was a drug addict and alcoholic but he wasn’t a bad boy. Does that make sense?”

Barrymore understood what her friend was saying, telling her, “It does. Because people have their behaviors. But I think there’s a very big difference between really wild and reckless and someone who is a good person and stable but dabbles and has issues.”

Bertinelli, who shares her 33-year-old son Wolfgang Van Halen with the late rocker, described her ex-husband as a “good person” who was “unstable” and “never dealt with his childhood trauma.”

“But he’s Wolfie’s dad, so he gave me the greatest gift I could ever, ever want — is to be a mother,” Bertinelli added.

As for whether she was always into edgy boys, Bertinelli said, “I liked the nice boys. And that’s what Ed was. He was the nice boy. And I always liked the nice boys.”

The Drew Barrymore Show airs on weekdays on CBS. You can check the website for local airtimes.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.