Former The View cohost Meghan McCain recently trashed current-day daytime talk shows, calling them “sublimely boring” with “hosts [who] want to be loved.”
But we wonder if McCain has been watching the same talk shows as we. To us, The Drew Barrymore Show and The Jennifer Hudson Show aren’t sublimely boring but just sublime. And even though the daytime talk-show industry isn’t as robust as it once was, especially now that Sherri and The Kelly Clarkson Show have ended, Drew Barrymore and Jennifer Hudson and their respective chatfests seem to be better than ever.
Ahead of the shows’ Season 7 and Season 5 returns, respectively, on September 14, we’re taking a look at why these two daytimers continue to break the mold and connect with audiences.
Drew Barrymore is holding her audience and guests close to her heart.
If Barrymore wants to hold our hands and gab with us from mere inches away, we’d be thrilled. The Charlie’s Angels star’s intimate interview style is indicative of how much she wants to connect with her guests and, for that matter, viewers at home. Barrymore seems to take the phrase “heart-to-heart” literally, and she has the public’s approval. “Drew Barrymore is really eating as a talk show host, OMG,” one X user wrote. “I can’t believe how good she is,” said another.
Whether the actor-turned-emcee is comforting (and sitting on the lap of) a crying audience member or copping up to getting a hot flash in front of an “adorable 30-year-old man,” viewers get the impression that Drew Barrymore of TV and Drew Barrymore of real life are one and the same. And she’s not afraid to take accountability for her choices: She controversially decided to film her talk show during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes before hitting pause on the season premiere and issuing her deepest apologies.
In March, The Drew Barrymore Show scored a two-season pickup from TV stations owned by CBS, Sinclair, and Nexstar, taking the show through the 2027–28 season, its eighth season on air, according to The Hollywood Reporter. At the time of the renewal, Drew was averaging a record high of 1.6 million daily viewers, while 14 million people followed the show on social and digital channels. The show was doing so well, in fact, that CBS announced it would run Drew in upgraded time periods next season in large markets including Seattle and Minneapolis–St. Paul.
And the show’s namesake star sounds like she’s still fired up about reaching and moving her audience, however they watch her show. “What matters most to us is our viewers and the people that come here!” Barrymore said in a statement at the time. “This show began as a space for intimate conversation, and we’re continuing to plant our flag as a truly multi-platform experience. We live in a world where people discover content in so many different ways, and from the very start in 2020, our mission was to break the mold rather than conform to the traditional daytime landscape. … My curiosity about people is what fuels me. I’m so excited to continue as I see this endeavor as an opportunity and a gift.”
Hudson’s personality hits the high notes for viewers.
Viewers also consider Hudson a warm presence on daytime TV — so much so that The Jennifer Hudson Show became the No. 2 most-watched talk show among women 18–34 in 2023, as TheWrap reported. “She seems to have a great personality and very personable with her guests,” one Reddit user said of the American Idol alum and Academy Award winner.
“She seems super personable and sweet,” another viewer observed. “It’s a good mix of real people and celebrities (I’m a Dr. Phil, Maury type of daytime television watcher, so I like seeing not just an endless parade of celebrities no one cares about).”
And some of those “real people” are pint-sized stars-in-the-making. Hudson often gives the spotlight to talented kids: a 3-year-old with Michael Jackson’s dance moves, a 4-year-old basketball prodigy who met Shaquille O’Neal on the show, a 12-year-old who nailed a Teddy Swims impression before getting to perform a duet with the singer. Perhaps the sweetest kid moment on The Jennifer Hudson Show came just this May, when Hudson’s own son, David, showed up to give her a Mother’s Day present (as J.Hud teared up immediately).
Plus, this Dreamgirls star seems to foster the kind of collegial energy other talk show hosts could only dream of. Just check out some of her talk show’s viral “spirit tunnels,” in which Jennifer Hudson Show staffers usher guests to the stage with chants or songs. (Who knew Abbott Elementary’s Chris Perfetti could get down like that?) Viewers don’t know what happens behind the scenes, of course, but The Jennifer Hudson Show certainly seems like a fun place to work.
Fox Television Stations awarded The Jennifer Hudson Show with a renewal for Season 5 this February. The talk show had enjoyed year-over-year growth among Adults 25–54, with viewership up 10 percent among women in that demographic, according to Deadline. Hudson’s program also ranked as the top daytime talk show on TikTok and Threads and the second-most-followed daytime talk show across social media. And its Spirit Tunnel uploads had surpassed 6 billion total views cumulatively.
Like Barrymore, Hudson doesn’t sound like she’ll leave her soundstage any time soon. “It is such a joy to connect with people in meaningful ways every day across this country and to share stories of heart and inspiration, all while bringing entertainment into people’s lives,” she said in a statement about her Season 5 pickup, per THR. “None of this would be possible without our incredible audience. They are the heartbeat of the show, and I am so excited to take this to new heights in season five.”
The Drew Barrymore Show, Season 7 Premiere, September 14, Check Local Listings
The Jennifer Hudson Show, Season 5 Premiere, September 14, Check Local Listings