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Drew Barrymore Refused to Host MTV Awards in Solidarity with the Writer’s Guild Strike

Drew Barrymore (Instagram)

Bicon Drew Barrymore announced days before the MTV Awards that she would stand down from hosting duties to be “in solidarity” with scriptwriters. The MTV Awards were aired in a pre-taped special after several attendees, including Barrymore, announced they were pulling out of the show for the same reason. 

More than 11,000 members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike recently–their first in 16 years–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,” according to CBS.

The WGA wants to address two main concerns. Firstly, artificial intelligence (AI) could write future scripts, threatening human writers’ livelihoods. Secondly is the impact of streaming platforms like Netflix on properly compensating writers today. 

The union wants its collective bargaining contract to guarantee that AI will not write or rewrite literary material, AI will not be used as source material and union-covered material will not be used to train AI. 

Instead of accepting the terms, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), representing eight major studios, rejected them and suggested: “annual meetings to discuss advancements in technology.” 

Acclaimed writers are currently experiencing bank overdrafts. “The companies’ behaviour has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing,” the WGA responded to the AMPTP’s decision.

The impact of the strike is already noticeable across the entertainment industry. Some shows have been temporarily shut for production, 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.

Barrymore said in a statement to CBS News that she would “pivot from hosting” the awards show.

“Everything we celebrate and honor about movies and television is born out of [the writers’] creation,” Barrymore said. “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.”

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