“The Talk” and “The Jennifer Hudson Show” will not be returning until Hollywood studio executives agree to a fair deal with striking film and TV writers — reversing previous plans to return Monday without their writers, which would have likely sparked fierce backlash.
Both announcements came Sunday, just hours after Drew Barrymore reversed her earlier decision to bring back her talk show while her writers are on strike. Following a week of widespread public criticism from Writers Guild of America members and other peers in the entertainment industry, Barrymore said Sunday: “I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show’s premiere until the strike is over.”
All three daytime talk shows employ writers who are WGA members currently on strike. (HuffPost’s unionized staff are also members of the WGA East, but are not involved in the strike.) Barrymore’s initial decision to resume her show without her writers came under particular scrutiny because it seemed to fly in the face of her public persona, as well as her previous public support for the writers strike.
Regardless, the response made it clear that other shows that attempt to return this fall without their writers will almost certainly face criticism and scrutiny.
The WGA has promised to picket shows that resume production without their striking writers. Among them is ABC’s “The View,” which has continued to air new episodes during the strike, despite employing WGA writers. Throughout the summer, union members have been picketing the show’s studio in New York and plan to do so again this week.
A few other daytime talk shows that have returned to the air this month, such as “Tamron Hall” and “Live With Kelly and Mark,” do not employ WGA writers.
