Drew Barrymore is taking “full responsibility” for the decision to resume her daytime talk show Monday amid strikes by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and SAG-AFTRA.
On Friday, the actress — who was the host The Drew Barrymore Show as of 2020 — shared a public apology on Instagram amid continued backlash, including protesters coming to tapings of her show.
“I believe there’s nothing I can do or say at this point to make it okay,” said Barrymore, 48. “I wanted to take the decision so it’s not a PR, protected situation. And I would simply take full responsibility for my actions. I know there is nothing I can do to make this OK for those who are not OK with it. I fully accept that. I completely understand that.”
She explained that there are “so many reasons why this is so complex,” adding, “I just want everyone to know that my intentions were never to upset or hurt anyone. It wasn’t me.”
Drew Barrymore Announces Return of Talk Show Amid WGA and SAG Strikes: ‘I Own This Choice’
Barrymore then took responsibility for the decision to continue production and apologized for her actions, saying: “I’ve been through so many ups and downs in life and this is one of them. My deepest apologies [the] writers. I deeply apologize to the unions. My deepest apologies. I don’t know exactly what to say because sometimes when things are so hard, it’s hard to make decisions from that place,” before breaking down into tears.
“All I can say is that I wanted to accept responsibility,” she continued. “And no, I don’t have a PR machine behind this, my decision to return to the show. I didn’t want to hide behind people so I won’t. I’m not going to sugar coat this with bells and whistles, publicists and corporate rhetoric. I’ll just stand on the outside, accept and be responsible.”
The TV personality responded when asked why she was filming the series amid the ongoing strikes, explaining: “Why am I doing this? Well, I certainly could not have expected this kind of attention, and we will not break the rules and we will comply with them. I wanted to do this because like I said, this is bigger than me. And there are other people’s jobs at stake.”
She added: “And since I started live in the pandemic, I just wanted to make a show that was there for people in sensitive times and I weighed the scales and thought if we can continue during the global pandemic and everything the world has experienced until 2020, why would we put that aside?”
“So I just want to put one foot in front of the other and make a show that’s there for people regardless of anything else that’s going on in the world because then I think we all need something that wants to be there, very real in very real times. So that’s my reason,” she concluded.
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Drew Barrymore in ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’.
CBS
‘Drew Barrymore Show’ cast members explain why they were kicked out as spokesperson expresses ‘regret’ over incident
Barrymore announced plans to resume filming on Instagram on Sunday. In her statement, she mentioned her decision in April to step down from hosting the 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards before the WGA strike began on May 2. Barrymore also pointed out that the previous season of her series ended filming before that date.
“I own this choice,” Barrymore wrote in a social media post. “We agree not to discuss or promote film and television that has been attacked in any way.”
“I am also making the decision to return to this strike for the first time for our show, which may have my name on it, but this is bigger than me,” the post continues.
Barrymore went on to write that she wanted 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,” adding, “I’m hoping for a resolution for everyone as soon as possible. We’ve gotten through tough times.” since we first performed. And so I step forward to begin Season 4 again with discerning humility.”
She pulled out Drew Barrymore to host the book awards after her talk show continued during the strike
Writers’ Association of America, East wrote on X that The Drew Barrymore Show was “struck” and that any writing on the show would be a “violation of the WGA’s strike rules.”
When filming resumed on Monday, there was a line outside the studio. Also a member of the audience divided by X that he and another audience member wearing pins and T-shirts to show support for the WGA were kicked out of the studio.
Representative for The Drew Barrymore Show acknowledged the incident in a statement to PEOPLE and expressed “regret” over the situation.
“It is our policy to welcome everyone to the tapings of our shows,” the spokesperson said. “Due to heightened security concerns today, we regret that two members of the audience were not allowed to attend or were denied access. Drew was not aware of the incident and we are in the process of contacting affected audiences to offer them new tickets.”
In light of the controversy, the National Book Foundation confirmed Barrymore’s invitation to host the 2023 National Book Awards. “cancelled” on Wednesday.
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The Drew Barrymore Show should be back on the air on Monday.
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Source: HIS Education