“Just cancel this show already”: Fans Demand Punitive Action after ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’ Searched Audience Bags to Confiscate Writers Strike Support Pins
With the Emmy-nominated actor Drew Barrymore deciding to continue production of The Drew Barrymore Show, her syndicated series, the WGA members started to picket outside the studio. The show is meant to return on September 18th.
On the way to tape the Monday show, Dominic Turiczek, an audience member, encountered picketers. He accepted the Writers Guild on Strike pin. Later, in a post made on X (formerly known as Twitter), Turiczek wrote about the mistreatment by the show’s crew. Two pictures were posted by him; one had the pin and the other of him with the strike t-shirt.
The Drew Barrymore Show Searched Audience Bags
Two audience members got banned from The Drew Barrymore Show from the tapings amidst the Writers Guild of America strike. After Turiczek’s tweet went viral, the morning show’s representatives released an official statement wherein they explained their actions.
In the statement, the show’s representative insisted that Barrymore was completely unaware of the situation. The People magazine was told:
“It is our policy to welcome everyone to our show tapings. Due to heightened security concerns today, we regret that two audience members were not permitted to attend or were not allowed access.”
According to numerous sources on X including FilmUpdates, the audience members wearing WGA pins were kicked out, and the show’s security “reportedly searched through audience members’ bags and confiscated all WGA buttons.” An X user TheefungibleNFT expressed their disappointment saying, “This is ridiculous, just cancel the show already.”
This is ridiculous, just cancel this show already
— TheeFungibleNFT (@thee_nft) September 13, 2023
Support the writers! Boycott this show!
— BullsKickAss (@Bullskickass) September 13, 2023
Hope this show gets cancelled
— 𝗲 (jjk era) 🍄 (@en0va516) September 13, 2023
When I thought she couldn’t be worse… I hope the audience is bad and the show gets canceled
— Rafa (@olicitybuddie) September 13, 2023
@DrewBarrymoreTV needs to be taken off the air. @DrewBarrymore, you ought to be ashamed.#WGA @WGAWest @WGAEast
— Travis Goss (@GameofTravis) September 13, 2023
With all that’s going on, it is still expected that Barrymore wasn’t aware of what’s happening on the sets of her show. Although she might have shown her support towards the strike in the starting days, it seems like her fans questioning her actions right now are not wrong.
Drew Barrymore’s Statement on the Return of The Drew Barrymore Show
It was just late last weekend when the 48-year-old star made a statement. She explained her decision to return despite the strike from SAG-AFTRA and WGA on her Instagram handle drewbarrymore. She wrote,
“I made a choice to walk away from the MTV, film and television awards because I was the host and it had a direct conflict with what the strike was dealing with, which was studios, streamers, film and television. It was also in the first week of the strike and so I did what I thought was the appropriate thing at the time to stand in solidarity with the writers.”
With all the explanation offered in the post, Barrymore insisted that the show is complying with the guidelines of the strike. She insisted that she owns the choice and that they are all in compliance with not discussing or promoting film and television, which remains struck.
Drew Barrymore might have promised to follow all guidelines, but the crew checking the bags of the audience members puts her in a difficult position. There are already tweets circulating to cancel the show, and therefore, it wouldn’t be a surprise if The Drew Barrymore Show doesn’t return on September 18th.
Source: FilmUpdates/X, TheefungibleNFT/X, drewbarrymore/Instagram, People
