Amidst criticism for continuing her daytime talk show during the ongoing writers and actors strikes, Drew Barrymore has now announced her decision to halt new episodes until the labor disputes are resolved. This comes just hours before CBS’ “The Talk” also made a similar announcement.
Taking to Instagram on Sunday, Barrymore shared her decision with her followers, stating, “I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show’s premiere until the strike is over. I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today.”
Barrymore had initially faced backlash for her plan to return to the air on Monday without her three union writers, despite the presence of picketers outside her studio. Her show had resumed taping in New York the previous week and had faced picketing by striking writers.
A CBS Media Ventures spokesperson expressed support for Barrymore’s decision to pause her show, acknowledging the complexity and challenges of the ongoing labor disputes.
While some daytime shows have resumed production, including “The View,” which returned for its 27th season on ABC, “Tamron Hall,” and “Live With Kelly and Ryan,” none of these are governed by writers guild rules. “The Jennifer Hudson Show” is also set to restart on Monday.
However, “The Talk” has opted to delay its planned restart on Monday and will continue to evaluate plans for a new launch date, according to a statement from CBC.
Ariel Dumas, head writer and supervising producer for “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” expressed approval of Barrymore’s decision on social media, hoping that other shows, including “The View,” would follow suit.
Technically, as long as talk show hosts and guests do not discuss or promote work covered by television, theatrical, or streaming contracts, they are not in violation of the strike, as talk shows are covered under a separate contract known as the Network Code. The Network Code also governs reality TV, sports, morning news shows, soap operas, and game shows.
Barrymore’s stance on the strike had previously led to her being uninvited as the host of the National Book Awards in November. The organization rescinded her invitation following the announcement that “The Drew Barrymore Show” would resume production.
The ongoing strike involves the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) facing off against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents major entertainment companies such as Disney, Netflix, and Amazon, among others.
