Drew Barrymore is still suffering the consequences of her actions, a.k.a. an ill-timed attempt to bring The Drew Barrymore Show back without its writers amid the writers strike. All she had to do was wait a few days; the WGA got the deal they deserved a week later. But despite eventually postponing her daytime talk show, with no set return yet announced, she also lost the gig to host the 74th National Book Awards.
Barrymore was dropped as the host amid backlash. The National Book Foundation said at the time, “The Awards are an evening dedicated to celebrating the power of literature, and the incomparable contributions of writers to our culture.” They rescinded her offer for, well, obvious reasons. But lucky for them, their crisis is now averted.
The NBF has announced that everyone’s favorite guy LeVar Burton is set to replace her for the ceremony. In a statement to The Los Angeles Times, Ruth Dickey, NBF’s executive director, said “We are honored to have LeVar Burton—a longtime friend and ally of the National Book Foundation—join us to celebrate the power of stories.” He previously hosted the awards in 2019.
Burton, who is a huge part of the Star Trek franchise, is also prominently known for hosting the children’s TV program, Reading Rainbow, which aired for 26 years. In 2023, he also executive produced the documentary, The Right To Read. He’s clearly an advocate, as also evidenced by his serving as honorary chair of Banned Books Week 2023. So yeah, Barrymore’s loss is definitely Burton’s (and maybe all of our?) gain. Now if Jeopardy had managed to secure his skills on a permanent basis, it would’ve been their gain too.
The 74th National Book Awards are set to take place on November 15 in New York City. (Do we think The Drew Barrymore Show will return by then?).