The WGA has announced that they will be protesting the show.
Key Takeaway
Bill Maher has announced that his show “Real Time with Bill Maher” will return to HBO without its team of writers. This decision has sparked disapproval from the Writers Guild of America (WGA), who are currently on strike. While Maher sympathizes with the concerns of the striking writers, he believes it’s time for others to return to work after months of disruptions. The show will have a different look without the scripted monologue, op-ed pieces, editorials, or the popular New Rules segment. Maher assures the audience that the heart of the show, the panel discussion, will continue despite the absence of the writers.
Bill Maher’s Interview Show to Return to HBO Without Writers
Bill Maher’s interview show will be returning to HBO, as he says he can’t continue to wait for the strike to end and wants others to get back to earning a living.
The host of “Real Time with Bill Maher” announced the return of his show on Wednesday in a social media post. He doesn’t specify when the show will air, but says it will have a different look without the writers.
Bill, who is also a writer himself, says he sympathizes with the “important issues” of the striking writers and hopes they are resolved in their favor, but after five months of disruptions, it’s time for others to return to work.
As he explains, the writers “aren’t the only ones with problems and concerns. Despite some help on my part, much of the staff is struggling.”
Bill had hoped the strike would be resolved after Labor Day, but that date has come and gone and he still feels like nothing is progressing.
He adds, “I love my writers, I’m one of them, but I’m not willing to lose an entire year and see so many below-the-line people suffer.”
Bill says he will honor the “spirit of the strike” by foregoing the scripted monologue, the op-ed piece, the editorial, or his popular New Rules segment, all of which relied on the writers in past seasons.
The HBO star also has a message for the audience: “The show I will do without my writers won’t be as good as our regular show, period. But the heart of the show is the panel discussion, which aims to cut through the nonsense and predictable partisanship, and that will continue.”
The series returns to HBO on September 22nd.
