‘Real Time With Bill Maher’ Is Returning to the Air, WGA Strike Be Damned

Strike or no strike, Bill Maher says the show must go on.

The comedian announced Wednesday that he’s going to proceed with new episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher, albeit without his writing staff, who are in month four of a work stoppage with the Writer’s Guild of America.

The move will make Maher the first late-night host to return to the air since the strike began.

“The writers have important issues that I sympathize with, and hope they are addressed to their satisfaction, but they are not the only people with issues, problems, and concerns,” Maher said in a statement posted to X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.

“Despite some assistance from me, much of the staff is struggling mightily. We all were hopeful this would come to an end after Labor Day, but that day has come and gone, and there still seems to be nothing happening.”

He added that to “honor the spirit of the strike” he would not be doing his typical written pieces, including monologues or “New Rule” segments. Deadline reports that this is the same standard procedure followed during the 2007-08 WGA strike.

“I’ll say it upfront to the audience: the show I will be doing without my writers will not be as good as our normal show, full stop,” he added. “But the heart of the show is an off-the-cuff panel discussion that aims to cut through the bullshit and predictable partisanship, and that will continue.”

Other talk show hosts, especially Drew Barrymore, have drawn ire for their decisions to continue filming while the action continues. The actor-turned-daytime talk show host was recently yanked from her hosting gig at The National Book Awards over the recent announcement that she planned to return to the air without three of her unionized staff—a move that technically does not violate the rules of the strike but nonetheless has been roundly denounced by many in the industry.

Maher also ruffled feathers last week when he called the WGA’s demands “kooky” and went on an extended rant downplaying their concerns.

“What I find objectionable about the philosophy of the strike, it seems to be they have really morphed a long way from 2007’s strike—where they kind of believe that you’re owed a living as a writer, and you’re not” Maher said. “This is show business. This is the make-or-miss league.”