Drew Barrymore has pulled out of her hosting duties for Sunday’s MTV Movie & TV Awards in lieu of the Writers Guild of America’s current writers’ strike, our sister site Variety first reported.
Despite her showing of solidarity and support to the WGA, Barrymore has agreed to return and host MTV’s annual ceremony in 2024.
“I have listened to the writers, and in order to truly respect them, I will pivot from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards live in solidarity with the strike,” said Barrymore in a statement. “Everything we celebrate and honor about movies and television is born out of their creation. And until a solution is reached, I am choosing to wait, but I’ll be watching from home and hope you will join me. I thank MTV, who has truly been some of the best partners I have ever worked with. And I can’t wait to be a part of this next year, when I can truly celebrate everything that MTV has created, which is a show that allows fans to choose who the awards go to and is truly inclusive.”
Sunday’s show will still air according to plan (at 8/7c on MTV), but will now go hostless. The network has also elected to move forward without a pre-show red carpet or talent interviews. Barrymore may still appear via pre-taped shorts she had already participated in.
“Drew, without question, she’s been incredible,” President of Music, Music Talent, Programming and Events at Paramount Global and executive producer of the MTV Movie & TV Awards Bruce Gillmer said in a statement. “It’s hard to imagine that we’ve ever had a better experience with a host. “She’s more of a partner really, she’s in it every day, just super passionate and super engaged and creative. She even bought some of her own team along for the journey. So when this all reared its head, we started to prepare for what could be. She is not surprisingly, standing in solidarity with the writers, which we have full respect for. She has our full support.”
The WGA strike got underway on May 2, after talks with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers broke down despite months of negotiation. At the center of the negotiation (among other things): An acknowledgment of, and correcting for, the way that streaming has affected the work, compensation and working conditions of writers.
According to WGA guidelines, once a work stoppage is underway, members are barred from writing, nor can they pitch or negotiate for work. What’s more, anything that was already written before the strike commenced cannot be edited during production.
Will you still be watching the MTV Movie & TV Awards despite Barrymore’s absence? Let us know in the comments.