Jeremy Allen White, Jack Black, Lily Tomlin Among Stars Set For ‘Give Back-ular Spectacular!’ Fundraising Event For Strike Relief – Update

UPDATE: A roster of talent including Jason Alexander, Jack Black, Lily Tomlin and Jeremy Allen White, among others, will join the Give Back-ular Spectacular! fundraising variety show to benefit the entire community of artists, craftspeople, technicians, production assistants and support staff facing financial difficulty due to the strikes. 

Produced by Marta Kauffman, Paul McCrane, Paul Scheer and more, The Give Back-ular Spectacular! set for October 25, 6 p.m., in Los Angeles at the Orpheum Theater will feature, in addition to those mentioned above, Rachel Bloom, LeVar Burton, Nicole Byer, Bryan Cranston, Lil Dicky, Lindsay Dougherty, Simon Helberg, Janelle James, Michael McKean, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, June Diane Raphael, Andrea Savage, Paul Scheer, Dax Shepard and Julian Velard.

The evening will consist of sketch comedy, stand-up, live interviews, musical performances, and more. Ticket and other information can be found here.

PREVIOUS, SEPT. 7: Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman, actors Paul McCrane (ER) and Paul Scheer (The League), among others, will partner with The Union Solidarity Coalition for a live fundraising event next month to benefit TV and film crew members financially affected by the current work stoppage.

Called “The Give Back-ular Spectacular,” the event will take place live at the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles on October 25, with simultaneous live-stream and digital donation opportunities available nationwide.

The two-hour event will feature musical acts, stand up comedians and celebrity-performed sketches. Details on the line-up will be announced later.

The event is designed to raise awareness about the effect of the writers and actors strikes on “the entire community of artists, craftspeople, technicians, production assistants and support staff,” organizers said. Money raised will cover COBRA and healthcare premiums for members of IATSE, the Teamsters, LIUNA and other workers in the industry who are having difficulty making payments due to the strikes.

Tickets to the event will be available soon, although donations are currently being accepted. Producers include Kauffman, McCrane (who will also direct), Scheer, Robbie Rowe Tollin, Jesse Schiller, Tony Phelan, Tara Miele and Kate Wagener, in association with The Union Solidarity Coalition, an organization founded by writers and directors to support crews impacted by the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

In other strike-related fundraising news, The Entertainment Community Fund (formerly The Actors Fund) announced today that the Stars In The House Labor Day Special presented on September 4 by SiriusXM’s Seth Rudetsky, husband and Broadway producer James Wesley, and Entertainment Community Fund Chair (and Nyad star) Annette Bening has raised more than $55,000 and counting.

The $55,000 tally is made up of a $25,000 matching gift donation by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS in honor of Bening and $30,000 in donations received during the telethon. The $30,000 in donations will go toward an ongoing effort to meet a $50,000 matching donation by John Cryer and wife Lisa Joyner.

Stars In The House, which airs new episodes on its YouTube channel and starsinthehouse.com, was founded by Rudetsky and Wesley in March 2020 to raise money for the performing arts community impacted by Covid, and has raised more than $1,253,780 since its beginning.

Since May 1, The Entertainment Community Fund has raised over $7.6 million from more than 9,500 donors to support film and television workers impacted by the strikes.