Drew Barrymore withdraws from hosting MTV Movie & TV Awards due to writers’ strike

Drew Barrymore disclosed Thursday that she has withdrawn from hosting duties for the upcoming MTV Movie & TV Awards in order to be “in solidarity” with the thousands of writers who went on strike this week.

The actress and host of “The Drew Barrymore Show” said in a statement provided to CBS News that she “will pivot from hosting” the awards show, which is scheduled to air live Sunday night.  

MTV is part of Paramount Global, which also owns CBS News.  

The more than 11,000 members that make up the Writers Guild of America went on strike Tuesday after failing to negotiate a new three-year contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the trade group which represents major Hollywood studios such as Netflix, Sony, Disney, Paramount, NBC Universal, Amazon and Apple.  

“Everything we celebrate and honor about movies and television is born out of their creation,” Barrymore said of writers in her statement.

The two sides are far apart on issues including residuals from streaming shows, staffing levels in writers’ rooms, and the role of artificial intelligence in penning film and television scripts.

The impact of the strike is already being felt across the entertainment industry, temporarily shuttering production on shows including “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” “Saturday Night Live” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

While Sunday’s awards show from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, will go on live as scheduled, it will not have a red carpet or pre-show celebrity interviews. Variety reports that the show will not have an official host. Barrymore is slated to host again in 2024.

“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,” Barrymore said in her statement.