Drew Barrymore has reversed her decision. The Drew Barrymore Show will remain on hiatus until the ongoing Hollywood strikes are resolved. This change comes just days after Drew initially announced her intention to resume her talk show amidst the strike, a decision that faced significant backlash for seeming to disregard the strike’s terms.
On Sunday, the actress revealed that she had postponed the show’s premiere until the strikes had concluded. In a statement shared on her Instagram account, Barrymore expressed, “I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show’s premiere until the strike is over.”
“I cannot find the words to convey my deepest apologies to those I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team that works on the show and has shaped it into what it is today. We truly explored all options to move forward, and I sincerely hope for a swift resolution for the entire industry.”
CBS Media Ventures issued a new statement, saying, “We support Drew’s decision to halt the show’s return and understand the complexity and challenges of this process for her.”
Barrymore faced significant backlash from writers and actors for her initial decision to resume the show despite the ongoing strikes by Hollywood actors and writers.
In a now-deleted Instagram video, Barrymore explained that she had felt compelled to proceed because of the potential impact on people’s jobs. “I deeply apologize to the writers. I deeply apologize to the unions,” she said.
Barrymore cited concern for “other people’s jobs” as a factor in her decision to move forward.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) condemned Barrymore’s choice in a statement, asserting, “Drew Barrymore should not be on the air while her writers are on strike, fighting for a fair deal. In reality, shows like this cannot operate without writing, and that is struck work.”
The fourth season of The Drew Barrymore Show had originally been scheduled to return on Monday, September 18.
Following Drew’s decision, Bill Maher announced his intention to resume Real Time With Bill Maher despite the ongoing strike. On X (formerly known as Twitter), Maher stated, “Real Time is coming back, unfortunately, without writers or writing. It has been five months, and it is time to bring people back to work. The writers have important issues that I sympathize with and hope are resolved to their satisfaction, but they are not the only ones with issues, problems, and concerns.” Similar to Drew, Maher’s show’s return faced criticism, and the WGA announced plans to picket his show.
Other talk shows planning to return to the air include The Talk, The Jennifer Hudson Show, and Sherri.
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