Charles Barkley Reveals Only Reason He’s Doing Flopping CNN Show With Gayle King

The initial anticipation for King Charles has not translated into the viewership that was expected when two of the best in the business joined hands. On Nov. 27 the show launched with 501,000 viewers, the lowest of any CNN Primetime debuts last year according to The Hollywood Reporter, which called it a ‘flop’. Amidst the falling ratings, the basketball Hall of Famer disclosed the sole reason he agreed to do the show during an appearance on the Back 2 You Show with Kathryn Tappen, Darren Pang, and Craig Conley.

As Barkley joined the podcast, Tappen welcomed him and joked the former NBA star is on every TV show, podcast, etc. The 1993 NBA MVP replied that working all the time is very overrated. He then talked about the reason behind doing CNN’s King Charles.

Barkley stated, “Well, I’m only doing that thing because of Gayle. She’s one of my favorite people. She’s awesome!” Notably, the 11x NBA All-Star had said the same before the show premiered as well and he is sticking to it.

The Philadelphia 76ers legend added the new show is fun and very exciting. However, basketball is his bread and butter. He noted that once someone plays a sport, it becomes part of them forever. Chuck also said that he will never get tired of watching basketball. Maybe that’s the reason for the CNN show flopping?

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After major concerns were raised due to the below-par ratings, Charles Barkley had a message for the people who were concerned about the new program. However, it went from bad to worse. In early Feb., the show saw its lowest rating with just over 400,000 total viewers. It is a far cry from what people expected when the rumors started to do the rounds last year.

Charles Barkley wanted to help

The rumors of Charles Barkley joining CNN for a new show started in early 2023. Reports of Gayle King joining forces with Barkley were also on the rise. Talking about this Chuck said, “They are trying to pair Gayle King and me… We don’t have anything set in stone. I’m only considering it because of my respect for Gayle.” 

His appreciation for King was apparent from early on. He added, “I just want to help the company because obviously it is a sh*t show right now… Anything I can do to help.”

Unfortunately, even the Hall of Famer could not help as the new show King Charles continues to struggle.

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