“Not my strong point”- Drew Barrymore to keep distance from guests on her show after renewal

The Drew Barrymore Show has been renewed for its fifth season, which will premiere on Monday, September 9, 2024. However this time, the 50 First Dates actress has something to say to the audiences who claim that she is too touchy with her guests on the show.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, posted on Thursday, August 22, 2024, Drew Barrymore said she would try to give a bit more space to her guests, although that is not one of her strongest points. Barrymore's gestures with the guests, often holding their hands, and stroking their arms, have been the subject of countless memes and comments on social media.

In the interview, Barrymore said that she is a social person, who loves to be around people. She also talked about the massive hardships The Drew Barrymore Show had to go through during the initial release of its first season on September 14, 2020, right in the middle of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

---

Drew Barrymore talks about how the COVID 18 pandemic affected her show

Drew Barrymore and Oprah Winfrey (Image via Amazon Prime Video)

In the interview with Entertainment Tonight, Drew Barrymore opened up about how deeply the pandemic had affected the release of her passionate project. She said,

“Do you know how hard the pandemic was for me? I was alone in a studio by myself! I like to be around people!”

She said that The Drew Barrymore Show is intended to be a feel-good show, that would cater joy and some good laughs to the audiences. But they didn't expect the show to launch in a pandemic, where it would be tough for the audiences to lean on humor, with the quarantine and critical medical situations looming in the air. She said,

“But I never thought we would launch in a pandemic, and trying to lean into the joy and the feel good and the comedy at that time was real weird and wacky.”

Back in 2016, Drew Barrymore had a deal with Warner Bros.' Telepictures that the show could never catch the screens. The pilot for The Drew Barrymore Show was shot in New York City in 2019, with the intention that the show will be released the next year. In the very first episode, Barrymore's guests included, Cameron Diaz, Lucy Liu, and Adam Sandler.

---

Drew Barrymore said this time she will maintain physical distance

The Drew Barrymore Show (Image via Amazon Prime Video)

Ahead of the release of the new season, Drew Barrymore said she plans to provide her guests with some more space this time. In the interview with Entertainment Tonight, she said,

“Well, I’ll try to practice physical distance, which is not my strong point."

Barrymore opened up about how the pandemic had affected not just her show, but herself.

“Do you know how hard the pandemic was for me? I was alone in a studio by myself! I like to be around people!”

In an episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Falon, aired on April 28, 2023, he teased Barrymore for spooning with her guests.

Barrymore explained that she has always been interested in knowing different people's lives. That is why she cherishes every incredible conversation that she shares with them.

“I love people. I love every human being on the planet,” she explained. “I’m fascinated and everyone has a story and every person is exceptional and interesting. And it is so fun to literally get to be a conversationalist at work. It’s the coolest thing in the world”, Barrymore confessed.

The Drew Barrymore Show caused a stir on social media when she interviewed Vice President Kamala Harris in an episode posted on April 30, 2024. There were repeated comments from the viewers saying Barrymore was being too personal and was making Harris, now the nominee for the next presidential election, uncomfortable.

Barrymore's hands-on interview gestures also raised eyebrows when she interviewed Oprah Winfrey on December 13, 2023, when she held her palms, and stroked her arms. As per E! News, the team expressed that she was not uncomfortable with her being too touchy.

With over one million viewers, The Drew Barrymore Show is all set to be released for the fifth season on September 9, 2024.