With just days to go until Sunday’s MTV Movie & TV Awards, ABC Audio has confirmed host Drew Barrymore has pulled out in “solidarity” with the writers strike that started earlier this week.
Additionally, it has been confirmed she will be back to host next year.
In a statement from her reps shared with ABC Audio, the actress and talk show host commented, “I have listened to the writers, and in order to truly respect them, I will pivot from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards live in solidarity with the strike.”
She continued, “Everything we celebrate and honor about movies and television is born out of their creation. And until a solution is reached, I am choosing to wait, but I’ll be watching from home and hope you will join me. I thank MTV, who has truly been some of the best partners I have ever worked with.”
Barrymore concluded, “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.”
The show will now go host-free, Bruce Gillmer, an executive producer of the telecast, explains to the Variety. “She is not surprisingly, standing in solidarity with the writers, which we have full respect for. She has our full support.”
There are apparently no hard feelings, with Gillmer adding, “The silver lining in all of this is that we really formed a partnership [with] almost a family-like atmosphere,” and she’s “accepted” an invite to return next year.
There’s also a question about who else will bow out considering the situation: Variety reports MTV has canceled the planned red carpet before the show.
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