On September 15th, Drew Barrymore posted a tearful video, apologizing to writers. The apology offered an explanation as to why she chose to bring back her daytime talk show, while writers and SAG-AFTRA are still on strike. She deleted the post that afternoon, after receiving criticism from her fellow members of the entertainment industry.
Some of the notable criticism came from fellow actors Bradley Whitford, Debra Messing, and Alyssa Millano. All three posted responses to the video. “I hope you will reconsider,” said Messing. Fans of Barrymore continue to criticize her choice to return to the airways.
“I believe there is nothing I can do or say in this moment to make it okay,” Barrymore says in her video. “I wanted to own a decision, so that it wasn’t a PR-protected situation, and I would just take full responsibility for my actions.” Tearfully Barrymore continues, “I know there is just nothing I can do that will make this okay to those that is is not okay with. I fully accept that. I fully understand that.”
“There are so many reasons why this is so complex and I just want everyone to know my intentions have never been in a place to upset or hurt anymore. It’s not who I am. I’ve been through so many ups and downs in my life, and this is one of them,” Barrymore says through tears. “I deeply apologize to writers. I deeply apologize to unions.” Barrymore goes on to say that she is continuing with this choice, “because as I said, this is bigger than me and there are other people’s jobs on the line.”
A WGA spokesperson said in a statement, “Drew Barrymore should not be on 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.”
CBS Media Ventures, which produces “The Drew Barrymore Show,” is backing their star, noting she is not violating SAG-AFTRA strike rules. This is due to working under The Network Code agreement, which allows daytime talk show hosts to perform their hosting duties. A CBS spokesperson assures that the show will be “in full compliance with all strike rules” when it returns on Monday. “We fully support Drew and her entire team 100%,” the spokesperson says. Barrymore’s show was met with protestors on its first day of production.
The WGA has condemned Barrymore and her decision to bring back her show, while SAG-AFTRA has defended her. While Barrymore’s show may not break any SAG-AFTRA current strike rules, as that is under a different contract, she’s still crossing WGA picket lines.
“The Drew Barrymore Show” was set to return September 18th, amid the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. After her announcement of returning to air, other talk shows confirmed they too would be rejoining airways. Shows like “Sherri,” hosted by Sherri Shepard, “The Jennifer Hudson Show“, and “The View” will all be returning on the 18th. The other talk shows do not have writers and are not considered WGA struck work.
As of September 17th, Barrymore has changed her mind, and will not be returning to the air.
