Friday, March 29, 2024

Gayle King and Charles Barkley team up for new primetime series on CNN

  • Gayle King and Charles Barkley will host a new primetime series called “King Charles” on CNN.
  • The show will air on Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. ET and run through 2024.
  • King Charles will be a discussion-style program covering politics and pop culture, and will focus on having good conversations without tearing each other down.

CNN is set to introduce a new primetime series called “King Charles,” featuring Gayle King and Charles Barkley. The show is set to debut in the fall and run through 2024, airing on Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. ET. The show will be a discussion-style program, covering topics ranging from politics to pop culture.

CNN boss Chris Licht has been experimenting with the 9 p.m. ET slot, offering a mix of live events and one-on-one interviews, instead of giving one personality a five-nights-a-week gig. King Charles will be a central feature of Licht’s efforts to revive the network’s primetime schedule, which has been without a permanent host since Chris Cuomo was fired in December 2021.

In a memo to staffers, Licht wrote that King Charles will be “an exciting new way we are delivering culturally relevant programming and unique perspectives to our audience, from two incredibly dynamic personalities.” While the show will cover politics, Barkley and King emphasized that they won’t be pigeonholed into a particular political affiliation.

“We don’t want to say we are a liberal, conservative, Republican, Democrat. That is one of the things that has already ruined television in general,” Charles Barkley said. “She is going to be a straight shooter, and you know I am going to be a straight shooter.”

King added that the show will focus on having good conversations without tearing each other down. “I want people to tune in to see, ‘What are Charles and Gayle going to do?’” she said.

When does “King Charles” premiere on CNN?

The show is set to debut in the fall and run through 2024.

Will Gayle King and Charles Barkley talk about politics on the show?

Yes, the show will cover politics, but Barkley and King won’t be pigeonholed into a particular political affiliation.

Will Gayle King and Charles Barkley continue their current roles while hosting “King Charles”?

Yes, King will continue to anchor CBS Mornings, and Barkley will continue his role at WBD Sports.

Latest news