Drew Barrymore Deletes Strike Apology Video Amid Backlash From Other Stars
Just hours after posting an apology regarding the return of her talk show in the middle of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, Drew Barrymore took the Instagram video offline.
Barrymore posted the video on the morning of Friday, September 15 — days after production on The Drew Barrymore Show resumed — but the video vanished from her Instagram page by Friday evening.
In the now-offline video, Barrymore “deeply” apologized to writers and unions but didn’t backtrack on her decision, explaining that “there are other people’s jobs on the line.”
But her apology rankled other Hollywood stars. “Drew Barrymore would like you to know that undermining union solidarity at the most crucial moment in Hollywood labor history makes her the victim,” tweeted The West Wing alum Bradley Whitford. “This has been, like, a super tough week for her.”
Drew Barrymore would like you to know that undermining union solidarity at the most crucial moment in Hollywood labor history makes her the victim. This has been, like, a super tough week for her. https://t.co/wtDVor9rKs
— Bradley Whitford (@BradleyWhitford) September 15, 2023
Will & Grace star Debra Messing added her thoughts in a comment on Barrymore’s Instagram post, according to Deadline. “You can choose now to halt production,” she wrote, per Deadline. “You can choose to pay your employees like other talk show hosts who have stood in solidarity with the writers. There are thousands of union members jobs and livelihoods that are at stake (exponential more than those who work on your show) and the future of our beloved industry. I hope you will reconsider.”
And in another comment, NUMB3RS actor David Krumholtz responded to Barrymore’s assertion that her talk show’s situation “complex”: “It’s complex for thousands. Who continue to strike and abide by strike rules. Extremely complex,” he wrote, according to Deadline. “You could shut it down and you’d be considered brave. You’d be forgiven. What makes the strike more complex for thousands of people, is you making a decision that hurts their efforts in trying to achieve a fair deal amidst a cutthroat corporate environment that will use your show as an example of division and disunity.”
And Charmed alum Alyssa Milano, a longtime friend of Barrymore’s, told The Associated Press that she’s not sure “that this was the right move for the strike.”
"Not a great move."
Alyssa Milano and other Hollywood union members aren't happy with Drew Barrymore for returning to her daytime talk show during the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. pic.twitter.com/cnRAg9RLMB
— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) September 15, 2023
In a statement on Friday, production company CBS Media Ventures emphasized that the new episodes of The Drew Barrymore Show are in “full compliance” with all strike rules, since Barrymore isn’t using any scripted material and is working under the SAG-AFTRA Network Television Code agreement that allows daytime hosts to continue their duties, according to Variety.
But in its own statement on Friday, the WGA said that Barrymore “should not be on the air while her writers are on strike fighting for a fair deal,” per Deadline.
“In reality, shows like this cannot operate without writing, and that is struck work,” the WGA’s statement added.
