Drew Barrymore announced on social media that the fourth season of her talk show, The Drew Barrymore Show, will begin soon in compliance with SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike rules.
“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,” says Barrymore on social media. “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. Our show was built for sensitive times and has only functioned through what the real world is going through in real time.”
Not All of The Drew Barrymore Show Writers Agree with Barrymore
According to The Hollywood Reporter, two New York-based students, Dominic Turiczek and Cassidy Carter, in line for a The Drew Barrymore Show taping were handed WGA pins before entering the studio that read “Writers Guild on Strike.” Security asked Turiczek and Carter to remove the pins. Carter complied; Turiczek still wore his into the studio. A crew member spotted the pin and both students were asked to leave.
Chelsea White, one of three The Drew Barrymore Show writers, was picketing outside the studio in Manhattan when she learned that the show is resuming production. “I think in general, this is obviously bigger than us three writers on The Drew Barrymore Show,” says White. “It is a bummer to hear that the show is going back because it sends a message that union writers are not valuable. And it goes directly against what the WGA, SAG-AFTRA, all the unions are trying to band together to stand up against the greedy studios.”
Liz Koe, another striking The Drew Barrymore Show writer, says:
“I think it’s such a complicated issue. I think that Drew cares about the show. She cares about the crew, She cares about us. She cares about everything and I think she made the best decision that she could, given all those things. And I feel like coming out here today is not a personal thing at all, it’s really the opposite, it’s a collective thing.”
The third The Drew Barrymore Show writer, Cristina Kinon, says, “I’m disappointed, but I understand that everybody has to do what they feel is best for them. For me and the WGA writers on the show, it’s important for us to stick with our union. We deserve a fair contract so we are here today outside.”
The @DrewBarrymoreTV Show is a WGA covered, struck show that is planning to return without its writers. The Guild has, and will continue to, picket struck shows that are in production during the strike. Any writing on “The Drew Barrymore Show” is in violation of WGA strike rules.
— Writers Guild of America, East (@WGAEast) September 10, 2023
The Drew Barrymore Show returns on September 18 on CBS. Any actors appearing on the show cannot discuss or promote any stalled projects due to the strikes.