Bill Maher postpones return of Real Time

Bill Maher has postponed the return of his HBO political show Real Time following an outcry from striking writers.

In a post to his X/Twitter account on Monday, the 67-year-old comedian confirmed he will delay the return to the show "for now".

"My decision to return to work was made when it seemed nothing was happening and there was no end in sight to this strike," he wrote. "Now that both sides have agreed to go back to the negotiating table I'm going to delay the return of Real Time, for now, and hope they can finally get this done."

Last week, the funnyman explained that his show, which has been on air since 2003, will be missing some of its usual features to comply with strike rules.

"I love my writers, I am one of them, but I'm not prepared to lose an entire year and see so many below-the-line people suffer so much," he explained at the time. "The show I will be doing without my writers will not be as good as our normal show, full stop. But the heart of the show is an off-the-cuff panel discussion that aims to cut through the bulls**t and predictable partisanship, and that will continue."

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) stated it was "difficult to imagine" how Maher could make the show without violating strike rules. The union had said members would picket the filming of the show.

The WGA, which has been on strike since early May, will resume talks with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents major film studios, TV networks and streaming services, on Wednesday.