Comic and social critic Bill Maher weighed in on the ongoing strike by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) that has paralyzed Hollywood and the entertainment industry, chiding some of their demands as “kooky” and saying that they aren’t “owed” making a living as writers.
The HBO host discussed the striking writers with Jim Gaffigan on the latest edition of his “Club Random” podcast when his fellow comedian expressed concern that the strike could “kill” the late-night shows which in today’s overly political environment have become little more than propaganda organs of the Democratic Party.
“They’re asking for a lot of things that are, like, kooky,” Maher said.
(Video: Grabien)
“No knock on the guys who do it. I don’t know how this art form has survived up until now,” the comic said of his late-night counterparts. “I mean, I understand why I’m on– because I’m on HBO. It’s an hour without commercials. And, I mean, sorry it’s a lot more entertaining. It’s a lot more edgy. It’s a lot more unpredictable. It’s true talk.”
The “Real Time With Bill Maher” host seemed to suggest that the late-night shows are dinosaurs and that it’s hard to believe that they’ve been able to survive in the modern era of plentiful on-demand entertainment options. Gaffigan made the argument that comics like himself and Maher have a connection with their audiences that keeps them coming back for more of their unique takes.
“It’s not a take. Those guys don’t have takes. I have takes. I have a take on things. What they do is say exactly what a liberal audience wants them to say about that,” Maher said of the leftist late-night DNC ventriloquist dummies. “That’s not a take.”
“There’s never a moment where you don’t know exactly, ‘Oh, this is the correct point of view on that.’ The strike is a perfect example. Those guys would never go back. This strike would go on till the 24th century. They would stay out,” he added.
The host noted that more people than just the writers are being impacted by the extended strike, saying, “I feel for my writers. I love my writers. I’m one of my writers. But there’s a big other side to it. And a lot of people are being hurt besides them. A lot of people don’t make as much money as them in this bipartisan world we have, where you’re just in one camp or the other.”
“There’s no in-between. You’re either for the strike like they’re f—ing Che Guevara out there. You know, like this is Cesar Chavez’s lettuce-picking strike or you’re with Trump. You know, there’s no difference. There’s only two camps and it’s much more complicated than that,” he said.
“What I find objectionable about the philosophy of the strike, it seems to be they have really morphed a long way from 2007 strike where they kind of believe that you’re owed a living as a writer and you’re not. This is show business. This is a make-or-miss league,” Maher added, opining that the writers chose to strike at the wrong time because they lacked any leverage.
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