Sherri Shepherd Says WGA Writers Not Employed As Show Returns Despite Strike

Sherri Shepherd is doing things differently despite the cruciality of the ongoing writer's strike.

It has been months since the Writer's Guild of America embarked on their strike action, and so many celebrities, including actors, have shown solidarity. However, Sherri Shepherd has made a significant decision per her talk show and is setting the record straight to douse tension and address the raised eyebrows trailing her action.

Unlike fellow actors Drew Barrymore and Bill Maher, who pulled the Shplugs on their talk show, Shepherd premiered season 2 of "Sherri" on Monday and jumped straight to business. The podcaster didn't hesitate to inform viewers that reopening the talk show doesn't violate the rules of the ongoing WGA strike.

She said some of Hollywood's biggest stars and actors "have been on the picket lines with the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes." She continued that there have been a lot of grey areas about who to work or not work with. In her words:

"Well, I'm a SAG-AFTRA actress, and I actually marched with some of my colleagues while in Los Angeles recently. That's me with Viola Davis, Niecy Nash."

Shepherd disclosed that, unlike other shows, she has never employed the services of any WGA writers as she belonged to a different guild herself. The actress said, "The Sherri show is not a WGA show, and we have never employed WGA writers, so us coming back to work isn't crossing the picket line."

The comedian explained that talk shows generally fall under a different union contract code, and everyone except WGA shows are allowed to come back on screen. Shepherd further clarified that she writes her jokes, and the comedic headlines viewers see everywhere are all a result of her creative genius.

In true spirit of solidarity, Shepherd extended a heartfelt statement to the striking bodies with hopes for a swift resolution. She added:

 "I stand in solidarity with my union. One of the things that we're fighting for is better residuals. … residuals during times that I was not working kept the lights on. My residual payments helped me care for Jeffrey when he was born at 25 weeks. So good residual payments are important to actors."

Regarding the current wave of artificial intelligence in the creative industry, Shepherd insists it can only replace some writers. In her words, "I'm here to tell you, AI can't replace all of this sass."

The Jennifer Hudson talk show has also been postponed despite the previous announcement of a return on September 18.

To commemorate season 2 of her talk show, Shepherd dropped significant news about a crucial surgical procedure. The "Beauty Shop" star revealed on July 13 that she went in for a breast reduction surgery following comments about her being too "top heavy."

However, the 56-year-old clarified that the comments did not influence her decision. Instead, she had a very hilarious reason for going under the knife. According to her:

"I got a boob job because I just wanted to see what it would feel like to sleep on my stomach."

Shepherd, who described the process as bittersweet, stated that she was a 42DD and revealed that her "old girls and "best friends" have been with her through it all. The decision to get them reduced came after episodes of intense pain and posture defect. Shepherd continued:

"It was so heavy. I was slouching all the time. It started to become really, really painful. My back was hurting very badly."

Shepherd is, however, extremely pleased with the result of her procedure, stating that she feels better and it couldn't have happened at a better time. The actress revealed "i can sit up straight.I feel lighter. It's easier to shop…I get up everyday and I send pictures of my boobs to everybody."

But this decision has been months in the making as ET shared her plans to get them reduced back in April when asked about her plans for the summer. "I think I'm getting my boobies done. I think I'm getting a little reduction because my back is starting to hurt, so that's a big one," the actress gleefully spilled.