Comedian Bill Maher has announced that his HBO political talk show “Real Time” will return to the air amid the ongoing strike, but without writers. Maher cited the need “to bring people back to work” as the reason behind his decision. He acknowledged the concerns of the striking writers but emphasized that the economic well-being of his staff influenced his choice. Despite assisting his staff, Maher highlighted their ongoing struggles.
The 67-year-old comedian also revealed that the show would resume without several writer-driven segments, such as his monologue and end-of-show editorial piece. He admitted that the new episodes would not match the quality of their normal show. However, Maher expressed his concern for the below-the-line workers who would suffer if the show remained off the air for an entire year. Maher’s show is filmed at Television City studio lot in Los Angeles.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) responded to Maher’s decision by calling it “disappointing.” The union urged Maher to honor more than “the spirit of the strike” and announced its plan to picket the show. As a WGA member, Maher is obligated to follow the strike rules and refrain from performing any writing services.
In a similar vein, Drew Barrymore recently announced that her daytime talk show will be returning with new episodes on September 18. Barrymore emphasized that her show is in compliance with not discussing or promoting struck film and television. However, her decision faced backlash and led to the WGA’s plan to picket her show, which is recorded at the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan.
In early May, Barrymore had withdrawn from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards to show solidarity with the WGA strike. She explained that her choice aligned with the strike’s focus on studios, streamers, film, and television. Both MTV and CBS Media Ventures, which distributes Barrymore’s show, are part of Paramount Global.
The Hollywood writers have been on strike since early May, and the Hollywood actors joined them on the picket lines in mid-July after failed negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. This simultaneous strike by the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild is the first since 1960, leading to a nearly complete shutdown of scripted production in Hollywood.
Paramount Pictures, one of the studios involved in the negotiations, is also part of Paramount Global. SAG-AFTRA or Writers Guild members among CBS News staff are not affected by the strikes.
— S. Dev and Gina Martinez contributed to this report.
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