Just four months into its fourth season, the nationally syndicated daytime show “The Drew Barrymore Show,” hosted by Drew Barrymore, has been renewed for a fifth season, Wendy McMahon, President and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures, recently announced.
Originally set to launch its fourth season on September 18, 2023, during what would become the tail end of the since-concluded Writers Strike, producers opted to delay the new season’s start after the show came under fire for continuing without its striking writers. As a result, the talk show received a major rebuke from members of the Writers Guild, becoming a target of striking writers that led to a notable presence by picketers outside the show’s New York studio.
Despite officially returning to production in October, with the new season launching on October 16, the show’s three WGA-affiliated writers declined to return to the series, forcing production to replace them.
CBS Stations will continue as the anchor group for the daytime talk show through the 2024-2025 television season in major markets, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
“‘The Drew Barrymore Show’ is firing on all cylinders this season,” McMahon said in a statement. “Drew continues to catapult the show into the cultural zeitgeist with her empathetic and thoughtful interviews transporting viewers into her living room, where they feel like they are listening to a conversation between two friends that they are a part of. It’s an experience unlike any other in television. Drew is truly creating magic in daytime, and we’re thrilled to continue to bring that to our stations.”
So far this season, the talk show is averaging 1.1 million viewers and seeing growth from October to December in several key measurements, including +9% in Households and +4% in Total Viewers. In New York alone, “The Drew Barrymore Show” is up in both Adults 25-54 (+23%) and Women 25-54 (+18%).
Featuring Barrymore’s signature interview style, the show has quickly become a destination for entertainment, information, and important conversations. Composed of exclusive celebrity interviews, unique lifestyle segments, social media influencers and feel-good news stories, the show’s mission is to touch all aspects of life through Drew’s unique optimistic lens.
Recent guests have included the full cast of the new “Mean Girls” film, including Renee Rapp, Angourie Rice, Avantika, Bebe Wood, Christopher Briney, Auli’I Cravalho and Jaquel Spivey, plus guests who’ve already appeared in recent episodes or will appear in the near future such as Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Annette Bening, Dan Levy, Isla Fisher, Lucy Hale, Clive Owen, Andie MacDowell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jamie Oliver and Chrissy Teigen, among others.
Later this month, the show will have the full cast of “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans” will appear, including Naomi Watts, Diane Lane, Chloë Sevigny, Demi Moore, Molly Ringwald and Calista Flockhart. “The Drew Barrymore Show” is produced and distributed by CBS Media Ventures and filmed in New York City. Drew Barrymore and Jason Kurtz are executive producers.
