The announcement came on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 10) via a statement on Instagram. “I made a choice to walk away from the MTV, film, and television awards because I was the host and it had a direct conflict with what the strike was dealing with which was studios, streamers, film, and television,” wrote Barrymore about pulling out of MTV’s award show in May.
The 48-year-old actress and host continued, “It was also in the first week of the strike and so I did what I thought was the appropriate thing at the time to stand in solidarity with the writers. And to be clear, our talk show actually wrapped on April 20th so we never had to shut down the show.”
“However, I am also making the choice to come back for the first time in this strike for our show, that may have my name on it but this is bigger than just me,” she added.
Daytime talk shows like The Drew Barrymore Show employ writers who are members of the Writers Guild of America. The WGA officially went on strike (May 2) and halted other syndicated shows such as NBC’s The Kelly Clarkson Show and CBS’ The Talk. Other shows such as ABC’s Live With Kelly and Mark, Tamron Hall, and The View are unaffected by the strikes since the shows are mostly unscripted, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“I own this choice. 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,” Barrymore continues. “I want 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. 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.”
