Now that the WGA and the AMPTP have finally reached a tentative agreement, possibly putting an end to the writers strike as it nears almost 150 days, The Drew Barrymore Show could return to air as soon as October, sources say.
According to Variety, sources close to production claim the hit daytime talk show is looking to return in the next few weeks now that a deal has been struck.
Recent reports from late night television have said the same, claiming producers have already began reaching out to crews and asking them to return to work, possibly as soon as Tuesday.
“I think everybody’s leaning forward, like they’re ready to go,” a source claimed. “I would look for them to return on October 2 or October 9. I think that they are going to be very motivated to get their crews working again.”
The late night hosts will allegedly return at the same time, which means their premieres could closely line up with Barrymore’s, setting October up to be an explosive month for talk television.
A premiere date for The Drew Barrymore Show has not been formally announced yet.
Drew Barrymore found herself in a sticky situation just weeks ago when she first announced that The Drew Barrymore Show would return on Sept. 18 despite the ongoing strike. The decision was immediately met with backlash from the WGA and writers online. But she later doubled down on her decision to bring her show back to air, saying she “owns this choice” and would ensure the show was “in compliance” with SAG-AFTRA and WGA picketing rules.
Barrymore faced mounting criticism for standing by her decision to return to work. She was not only let go from hosting the National Book Awards, but she was also publicly criticized by her show’s co-head writer.
She soon announced in a tearful Instagram post that she ultimately decided to cancel the show’s premiere “until the strike is over.” The Jennifer Hudson Show and The Talk swiftly followed suit and delayed their own season premieres.
Now that the WGA has struck a tentative agreement which they described as “exceptional,” it looks like we could expect more talk shows to come back sooner rather than later.
After news broke of the WGA’s agreement, some social media users noted that all of this criticism could have been avoided if Barrymore had held out for just a few weeks. But others noted that the unexpected backlash she faced possibly helped spur the studios and streamers into action.
“I actually think the backlash drew got is what made the amptp realize they needed to make a deal asap cuz they saw they couldn’t get away with some shows crossing the line like last time,” one user wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Now that a tentative agreement has been reached, the WGA’s negotiating committee will decide on whether to recommend that the deal go to a vote. The contract will then be sent to the guild members for ratification.