For a week, the lovably quirky and phenomenally resilient Hollywood star Drew Barrymore became one of the most mocked and disparaged women in America.
As the strike by Hollywood writers entered its fourth month, Barrymore insisted that her eponymous day-time talk show would resume production. In her response to the backlash last week, the former child actor-turned “Charlie’s Angels” power player doubled down on her decision by delivering an emotional, rambling statement that was not the convincing explanation she intended but a display of “Hollywood royalty” at its most privileged and clueless, Puck’s Mathew Belloni said, further exposing her to more vitriol, derisive memes and accusations of being a scab.
But Barrymore became admired again on Sunday after she announced that she was pausing her show’s return until the Writers Guild of America strike is over. “I have listened to everyone,” she said in a statement post on Instagram. She also said, “I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt.”
With that decision, many of the writers, pundits and celebrities, including Rosie O’Donnell and Bradley Whitford, who had lashed out at her last week for “undermining union solidarity” welcomed her “back to the fight.” They also dismissed the grumblers, who argued that Barrymore only decided to pause her show because she knew that the bad publicity was destroying her brand. Some of her fiercest critics last week rushed to social media on Sunday and Monday to thank her for halting production. They also praised her for being willing to listen and to change her mind.
“Credit to Ms. Barrymore for thinking this through and coming out on the right side,” David Simon, the creator of “The Wire” wrote on X. When someone protested that Barrymore “does not need to be applauded for doing the right thing,” Simon replied: “It’s hard to change your mind and deeds in public. When someone does it and rejoins our ranks, I welcome them. That is how organized labor works and grows.”
Actor John Carroll Lynch also said on X that he was “moved” by Barrymore’s willingness to listen and change her mind. “This is a teachable moment,” Lynch said.
Another writer, Lon Harris, agreed, praising Barrymore’s “strength of character.” Harris wrote, “Honestly, recognizing you were wrong, apologizing and reversing public course publicly is TOUGH and Drew Barrymore deserves praise for getting there. If studio chiefs had her strength of character, the strike would be over.”
Writer Luke Barrett went further with the idea that Barrymore has made herself a positive example in an industry that’s often driven by money, ego and self-interest. “People responding to Drew Barrymore making the right decision with ‘she didn’t do it until she got blowback’ are what’s wrong with our country,” he said. “You make a wrong call, you listen and you correct.”
Barrett also noted that Barrymore’s decision to suspend her show created a ripple effect, with other talk shows reversing course on resuming production, including “The Talk” and Jennifer Hudson’s show. Even the contrarian Bill Maher, who delights in undermining progressive movements, thought better of his decision last week to return to taping his HBO show, “Real Time With Bill Maher.” He announced, “I’m going to delay the return of ‘Real Time,’ for now, and hope (both sides) can finally get it down.”
With Barrymore “listening to criticism and doing the right thing,” Barrett said it’s “almost as if we should create a society that encourages people to listen and change. It’s almost as if we should be a society that forgives.”
“The West Wing” star Whitford explained why Barrymore’s change of course mattered. On social media, he said that continuing her show would have bolstered the position of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which “is depending on a cruel strategy of attrition to break us by inflicting maximum financial pain on our community, city & state.”
On social media, many writers celebrated their successful effort to put pressure on Barrymore to change course, and there has to be truth to the idea that her brand could have been irreparably damaged if writers and actors could continue to label her a scab.
Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Times entertainment writer Meredith Blake explained how “Barrymore’s entire brand is about authenticity, kindness. … She may have been born into dysfunctional showbiz royalty, but she wasn’t a creature of Hollywood.”
Barrymore remained “cherished” because she had not let “the ruthlessness of the industry turn her into another showbiz phony.” But her disastrous public statements justifying the resumption of her show — which many said could have used a professional writer’s touch — damaged “much of the goodwill she stockpiled over more than four decades in the business,” Blake said.
“Fans were left to wonder whether America’s adorkable sweetheart was just doing a bit the whole time,” Blake also said.
Now, fans can be left to believe that Barrymore is truly sincere about wanting to do good in the world, while writer Joe Henderson said on X it was “pretty darn cool” that her change of heart was encouraging others to maintain solidarity with the WGA.
