Drew Barrymore Defends Talk Show’s Return Amid Strikes: ‘I Own This Choice’
Drew Barrymore is defending the return of her daytime talk show amid ongoing Writers Guild of America (WGA) and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
The Drew Barrymore Show will debut its fourth season on Monday, Sept. 18, CBS Media Ventures announced last week.
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“I own this choice,” Barrymore wrote in an Instagram post on Sunday. “We are in compliance with not discussing or promoting film and television that is struck of any kind. We launched live in a global pandemic. Our show was built for sensitive times and has only functioned through what the real world is going through in real time.”
Barrymore explained that the decision to return stems from a desire to “be there to provide what writers do so well, which is a way to bring us together or help us make sense of the human experience.”
“I hope for a resolve for everyone as soon as possible,” she added. “We have navigated difficult times since we first came on air. And so I take a step forward to start season 4 once again with an astute humility.”
Barrymore acknowledged that she stepped down from hosting the MTV Film and TV Awards in May, because “it had a direct conflict with what the strike was dealing with, which was studios, streamers, film and television.”
“It was also in the first week of the strike and so I did what I thought was appropriate at the time to stand in solidarity with the writers,” she said.
The WGA responded to Barrymore’s statement with a brief post on X (fka Twitter), reiterating that any writing done on The Drew Barrymore Show‘s new season “is in violation of WGA strike rules.”
“The @DrewBarrymoreTV Show is a WGA covered, struck show that is planning to return without its writers,” the WGA stated on Sunday. “The Guild has, and will continue to, picket struck shows that are in production during the strike.”
The Drew Barrymore Show wrapped Season 3 ahead of the strike and was renewed for its fourth season in January.
Daytime TV’s Big Moves
Daytime talk shows have largely been unaffected by the strikes because those who host them operate under what’s known as the Network Television Code (see handy graphic!), which is separate from the TV/theatrical contracts that are now being struck by SAG-AFTRA. And those who work under the Network Television Code are asked to honor their contracts.
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