What hypes everyone up before they head to NATPE Miami is having a real-life movie star in the mix, and that is what syndication will get with the arrival of Drew Barrymore this fall. But two stars are better than one, and multi-hyphenate Nick Cannon also is joining the daytime party.
Drew Barrymore will bring her Hollywood star power to CBS's new 2020 offering.
When CBS Television Distribution announced it would do a talk show starring Barrymore, the media took notice. Barrymore is a movie star starting with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and moving through films like Scream, The Wedding Singer and 50 First Dates whom everyone feels like they grew up with. In 2000, she kicked serious ass in a remake of Charlie's Angels, one of many movies she produced through her company, Flower Films.
More recently, she has executive produced and starred as Timothy Olyphant's bloodthirsty zombie wife in Netflix's Santa Clarita Diet. She also has her own lifestyle brand, Flower, with several lines available in retail chains such as Walmart and CVS.
That kind of longevity and brand power is a valuable commodity in the cluttered environment of daytime TV, where these days it's hard to tear people away from their phones, much less get them to tune into a program at a regular day and time. So when CBS Television Distribution had the opportunity to get into business with a household name, the company jumped on it.
The need in the marketplace aligns with who Drew is: She is the OG optimist, CBS Television Distribution executive VP, development Elaine Bauer Brooks said. I think the marketplace needs an uplifting, fun, escapist kind of show that isn't saccharine, but has a comedic edge.
It's not Barrymore's first go-round in syndication. In 2016, Warner Bros. tried to sell a talker starring Barrymore that would serve as a lead-in to Ellen DeGeneres, whose team would have executive produced the show. But NBCUniversal instead chose to renew Steve Harvey's talker after it migrated to Los Angeles. That meant Warner Bros. couldn't find time slots on major-market stations.
Barrymore didn't lose hope, though. I love this saying that I have on a neon sign in my entryway: Timing is Everything, she said. Sometimes things are seeds being planted and when they don't manifest, we tend to take that as a failure or a missed opportunity. But I have learned that nothing is for naught something will come around and that time and education and investment will pay off somewhere else later.
And she was right. In 2019, CBS decided Barrymore was the person they wanted to take a chance on. This was a year we felt we wanted to take a big swing and we found a person we believed in enough to do that, Bauer Brooks said. This show is a natural extension of who we are as a company.
Barrymore, 44, is a single mother of two. I have had to figure out my whole life in front of everyone, she said. I have had to learn in the last decade how to truly take care of myself. Then I had two girls, and I had to learn what it's like to truly take care of others. I am throwing an all-ages party and everyone's invited. That's how I've made movies and how I've built the companies I have.
Bauer Brooks said the show will be authentic to who Barrymore is. It will include some celebrity, lifestyle, pop culture and humor, she said. I can't wait to tackle all of that with Drew. The audience said it best after watching the pilot: it's like going to a fun party and coming home with a new best friend.
Fox to Launch Nick Cannon
Nick Cannon adds a syndicated talker for Debmar-Mercury.
Meanwhile, Fox will be debuting a talk show starring another celebrity who has lived much of his life in the spotlight: Nick Cannon, who hosts such shows as The Masked Singer on Fox and sketch comedy series Wild 'N Out on MTV, which has become a touring live show and a chain of restaurants. Cannon is friends with daytime talk-show host Wendy Williams, so when she needed guest hosts to fill in for her last February, he was happy to oblige. Hosting three shows, he looked extremely comfortable and grabbed some attention for his performance.
Nick is really creative and really smart but he also understands the business of television, said Ira Bernstein, co-president of Lionsgate-owned Debmar-Mercury, which is producing and distributing the show. Debmar-Mercury tends to test its shows first and then take them nationwide. But in the case of Cannon, they felt at ease with skipping that step.
Nick is so successful in all the things he's doing, plus he was so great when he hosted Wendy, added Mort Marcus, co-president, Debmar-Mercury. We were taken aback in a good way. We felt in this particular case he had already been tested.
This fall, Debmar-Mercury will have its hands full. Besides launching Cannon's show, it's debuting Pop TV's Schitt's Creek in off-network syndication and this year's entertainment magazine test, Central Ave, as a first-run one-hour series for weekends. For Cannon, starring in his own talk show will mean staying in one place probably New York City for a while, and he seems fine with that.
I don't feel like this is settling down, Cannon said. Finally, I'll get a central hub for all of the things I do.
Like Barrymore, Cannon plans to make his show a fun place to hang out. This is a show about good times and escapism, he said. I want to inspire an audience and let them get to know me in a fun and intimate way. I have studied everyone from the greats, like Merv and Oprah, and people who are doing a great job in the space right now, like Ellen and Wendy. I want to tap into that and bring my comedy, fun and knowledge of pop culture.
Sony Fills Plate With The Good Dish'
A third show in the marketplace is Son
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
19/08/2026
World Cup Games Generate 84 Billion Minutes Across FOX, Fox Sports 1 and NBCU...
19/08/2026
July brought typical peak-holiday drops in viewership, driven primarily by viewers stepping away from screens and a visible decline in reach across both traditi...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Henry joins BCE as the company accelerates its commercial strategy and expands its international presence across the media, broadcast and technology markets. He...
19/08/2026
iWedia, a leading provider of software solutions for connected TV devices, today announced a major milestone in Android platform optimization with the successfu...
19/08/2026
NTP Technology announces that ST 2110-30 audio-over-IP connectivity with AES67 and RAVENNA capabilities is now available for the brand's world-class audio i...
19/08/2026
Net Insight has been selected to provide its Nimbra platform by the service provider Big Blue Marble, formerly ORS Group, as the core media transport solution f...
19/08/2026
LiveU has supported Coventry City FC and several other top-flight UK football clubs through one of their most demanding live production challenges of the year, ...
19/08/2026
Nature Seekers Documentary Shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Filming endangered turtles required camera...
19/08/2026
Neyrinck Brings D-Control Consoles Back to Life on Apple Silicon with D-Control ...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Australia, implemented a comprehensive communications infrastructure that brin...
19/08/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, will spotlight a major leap forward in remote guest con...
19/08/2026
Integrated platform melds media asset management, playout automation and newsroom workflows
EMAM, PlayBox Neo and SNEWS have officially launched Nuvex, a conne...
19/08/2026
Screen Australia releases the Private Investment Toolkit to strengthen screen in...
19/08/2026
Do Aussies truly value local content? Unpacking Screen Currency 2026 with Deirdr...
19/08/2026
On Saturday September 5 Katie Taylor will step into the ring for the fight of her life against Flora Pili in front of 80,000 fans in Croke Park. A legendary fig...
18/08/2026
SportStream 2026, a free three-day virtual event, will take place September 15-17. One registration provides access to all three days of live programming and on...
18/08/2026
BeckTV will introduce BeckFlow to the European market at IBC2026, demonstrated on the Providius stand (10.F53).
BeckFlow is a web-based schematic documentation...
18/08/2026
Boland Communications will introduce a SMPTE ST 2110 input option for its 4K monitors at IBC2026, along with a new 55-inch super-narrow bezel display for video ...
18/08/2026
Dolby Laboratories and the Seattle Seahawks have announced a partnership integrating Dolby OptiView into the Seahawks' live streaming coverage, making the S...
18/08/2026
For BMG Executive Producer of Sports Production, Graham Taylor, producing live s...
18/08/2026
TMRW Sports has appointed Rufus Hack as President of Golf, a newly created role in which he will lead the company's golf businesses including TGL presented ...
18/08/2026
SMT will provide race technology for FOX Sports' coverage of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. on August 23, when the NTT INDYCAR SERIES races ...
18/08/2026
The live, YouTube-native roundtables combine fan voices, credentialed reporters,...
18/08/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/08/2026
The industry legend sounds off on replacing the Heat's iconic Medusa score...
18/08/2026
William F. Rasmussen, the sports fan-turned broadcaster and entrepreneur whose out-of-the-box idea of a 24-hour cable sports network, ESPN, changed forever the ...
18/08/2026
DAZN Group has completed its acquisition of ViewLift, a provider of streaming and digital solutions for sports content owners. The acquisition was first announc...
18/08/2026
The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has added SI TV, Sports Illustrated's 24/7 streaming channel, as a broadcast partner for the remain...
18/08/2026
The Esports Foundation has announced that the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), originally scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, will be postponed to Novemb...
18/08/2026
Diversified has announced a new Global Managed Services Practice, consolidating the company's managed services capabilities into one organization. Rob Mello...
18/08/2026
Appear has completed a proof of concept with Thoroughbred Racing Productions (TRP), demonstrating multi-camera remote live production over bonded 5G cellular an...
18/08/2026
Riedel Communications has announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, ...
18/08/2026
Company launch with stereo-imaging tool
Panoramic is the debut release from Panorama Labs, a new company formed by mastering engineer Nicholas Di Lorenzo. C...
18/08/2026
Control software now available for older interfaces
Focusrite have just announced the launch of an update that extends Control 2 software support their Scar...
18/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
18/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/08/2026
Lightware announces an integration with SpectralBot that helps system integrators and AV operators troubleshoot faster using augmented reality (AR), AI-assisted...
18/08/2026
Command Frame for After Effects
Scott Black August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Free download, demonstrations, hands-on tests, and creator resources
Want to t...
18/08/2026
At Stand 14.A57, the data company will demonstrate GreenDot and IBM Aspera together, giving media and entertainment businesses real-time visibility of what thei...
What hypes everyone up before they head to NATPE Miami is having a real-life movie star in the mix, and that is what syndication will get with the arrival of Drew Barrymore this fall. But two stars are better than one, and multi-hyphenate Nick Cannon also is joining the daytime party.
