L-R: Omar J. Dorsey, Chuck Lorre, Nick Bakay, & Rob Corddry. Photo credit: Monica Schipper/Getty Images for Vulture.
Max’s Bookie is coming back for a long-awaited second season. The show - which stars Sebastian Maniscalco and Omar J. Dorsey - was a popular favorite with audiences and critics alike. So it wasn’t too much of a surprise that the show was picked up for season two earlier this year.
We recently caught up with the show’s creators Chuck Lorre and Nick Bakay, as well as actors Omar Dorsey and Rob Corddry, to find out what we can expect from season two at Vulture Festival.
Nick Bakay (Co-Creator): We left our guys in a good situation to pick up on. Ray was at the wedding and everything went to hell with Frank. And then we also had Danny with his marriage in a mess and running off to see what he could do with that. So we’re picking up right where we left off, and we sort of sort those situations out.
Omar Dorsey (“Ray”): When we last saw Ray, his grandmother was getting married. Her fiancé - or husband - had a heart attack at the wedding. So we’re going straight from that to the hospital. There’s all sorts of things that happen from there.
Bakay: There’s nothing like getting into a second season. It’s the privilege of knowing your characters, knowing your world, knowing what everyone does well.
Chuck Lorre (Co-Creator): We’ve come to understand that our protagonists - our victims - they’re prey, not predators. Despite their best efforts, shit happens to them. They suffer the worst of it. And that’s part of the comedy.
Bakay: The goal of the show is when they’re the victims. The more that they’re behind the 8-ball, the more that they’re the ones getting up, the more they have money troubles, the more the bets aren’t working out for them, the more the show sings.
Dorsey: Danny and Ray, they won a lot of money, but they lost a lot of money, too.
Lorre: Characters that I care about [is what I look for]. Comedy comes second. First is empathy. You have to give a damn about the characters. Something about them - whether they’re good guys or bad guys - you’ve got to care.
Rob Corddry (“Walt”): It was one of those shows where I think I probably said yes before my agent had finished the sentence. Because the pedigree, the cast is incredible. And it’s lived up to my very high expectations.
Lorre: Well we talked to a lot of bookies [for research]. We talked to bookies all over the country.
Dorsey: I called my bookie [for research]. That’s what I do. I talk to my bookie. I live in New Orleans. I live right down the street from the casino. I’m not a stranger.
Bakay: It was fun research. And they were pretty open with us about everything except how do you handle cash?
Lorre: No one wanted to handle money laundering.
Dorsey: My bookie loves it so much. It’s his favorite show. I just saw him, we talked about it. He’s ready for season two. I told him it’s coming out December 12th. So he’s excited.
Lorre: Bookies love the show. It’s like when doctors watch a medical show. You know they’re sitting there going “Nonsense. This is nonsense.” That’s cop watching cop shows. But for the most part, we’ve tried to present the small time bookie in an honorable light.
Bakay: I got great feedback from the gambling community across the boards. There was one moment that I saw some funny tweets about. But it was just some guys that don’t understand character. They were mad about Jack Han and the vig. But it led to one of the best lines in season one, which was Jack Han screaming “No vig!”
Bakay: I do a lot of podcasts and I do radio and I know a lot of people in Vegas. We got very high marks. So we’re proud of that.
Lorre: The only entity that hasn’t been very supportive is the NFL. They don’t support gambling. Not our kind. The kind they have a piece of, they’re fine with.
Dorsey: Funny enough, I was just talking to my bookie on Friday night for the Mike Tyson fight. I was trying to get a bet in, and he said “You don’t want to make that bet. Omar, I’m not taking that bet.” I would’ve bet on Mike Tyson. He said “You don’t wanna take that bet.” So I’m glad that he saved me money. I was gonna give him a thousand dollars for nothing.
Lorre: The reconciliation with Charlie [Sheen] has been wonderful. His appearance in the first season and also in the second season has been fantastic. His cameo in this one is [chef’s kiss]. It’s been wonderful.
When does "Bookie" come back for season two?
Bookie returns to Max December 12th.
