Drew Barrymore and the paused show ‘The Talk’ return as writers and actors remain on strike

CNN
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Drew Barrymore announced Sunday that she will suspend the premiere of her talk show after receiving backlash over her decision to resume production while more than 11,000 television and film writers remain on strike.

“I have listened to everyone and am making the decision to suspend the series premiere until the strike is over,” Barrymore wrote in a statement posted to her verified Instagram page Sunday morning.

“I have no words to express my sincerest apologies to everyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who work on the show and who have made it what it is today. We have really tried to find our way. And I really hope that a solution will be found very soon for the entire sector,” she wrote.

A spokesperson for CBS, the local channel for “The Drew Barrymore Show,” told CNN in a statement Sunday: “We support Drew’s decision to pause the return of the series and understand how difficult this process has been. complex and difficult for her. »

Other daytime talk shows airing new episodes include “The View,” “Tamron Hall” and “Live with Kelly and Mark,” but CBS daytime talk show “The Talk” has also suspended its return , another CBS spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday. .

“‘The Talk’ is suspending its premiere season scheduled for September 18. We will continue to evaluate plans for a new launch date,” the statement said.

Barrymore’s statement comes after a turbulent week for the actress and television host, who faced criticism from the Writers Guild of America (WGA) after defending her decision to resume production without WGA writers, at amid the ongoing double strikes in Hollywood.

In a statement shared on Instagram earlier this month, Barrymore explained her stance on her show’s return. She explained why she previously chose to “opt out” of hosting the MTV Movie and TV Awards in May, saying “it was in direct conflict with what the strike was about, namely the studios, the streamers, the cinema and television.

“To be clear, our talk show ended on April 20, so we never had to stop the show,” she wrote in her statement. “However, I am also making the choice to return for the first time in this strike for our show, which may have my name on it but that’s just beyond me.”

The statement did little to stop the backlash and the WGA East announcement it would be a picket line for his New York-based daytime talk show.

“The @DrewBarrymoreTV Show is a hit show covered by the WGA that plans to return without its writers,” the guild posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, at the time. “The Guild has and will continue to organize pickets for shows that are in production during the strike. Anything written on “The Drew Barrymore Show” is a violation of the WGA’s strike rules.

A few days later, Barrymore released an emotional video in which she apologized “to the writers” and “to the unions” and said she took “full responsibility for my actions,” but the video was was widely mocked on social media and then deleted.

“I know there is nothing I can do to make this acceptable to those with whom it is not acceptable. I fully accept that,” she said in the video, going on to describe the situation as “complex” and that she never intended to “upset or hurt anyone.”

“That’s not who I am,” she said, sounding emotional. “I’ve been through so many ups and downs in my life, and this is one of them.”

The WGA went on strike in May after its members failed to negotiate a new contract with studios and streamers. In July, SAG-AFTRA, the union representing 160,000 actors and performers, followed suit.

“The Drew Barrymore Show” was scheduled to return Monday.