CHUCK LORRE: We immediately recognized that we were just so gifted with the whole cast.

I know it sounds like smoke and hyperbole and whatnot, but it is a deep bench.

Everybody in the cast is remarkable.

Sebastian Maniscalco as Danny and Omar J. Dorsey as Ray looking at each other in Season 2 of Bookie

Image via Max

Those two guys together are good.

No matter what else happens, were good with those two gentlemen characters.

There was so much chemistry between them.

Sebastian Maniscalco as Danny in an elevator next to Omar J. Dorsey as Ray with a baby in Season 2 of Bookie

Image via Max

I think the big lesson from Season 1 was recognizing that these were not predators, they were prey.

They were victims, more often than not.

Even in success, they faced enormous obstacles.

Poster artwork of Sebastian Maniscalco as Danny and Omar J. Dorsey as Ray for Bookie

How far ahead do you think about where youre going with this show?

Do you take it season by season?

LORRE: I wish I was that capable, but Im not.

Sebastian Maniscalco as Danny and Omar J. Dorsey as Ray sitting in a hospital waiting room in Bookie

Image via Max

A master plan where I can plot out a whole season would be fantastic.

I just dont know how to do that.

Charlie Sheen is also back as himself!

Image from Jefferson Chacon of Sebastian Maniscalco in a leather jacket looking at the camera for Bookie

You have to be very protective of the characters.

That is a way to go, but it is not a very fulfilling way to go.

The characters have to grow, but sometimes in imperceptible ways.

Leanne Morgan on stage doing standup comedy

Its a careful-what-you-wish-for situation.

You also have a real top-notch guest cast.

What if he opens the trunk and hes got the wrong guy?

Bookie TV Show Poster

Follows a veteran bookie struggling to survive the impending legalization of sports gambling, increasingly unstable clients, family and co-workers.

My favorite line there is when they go, Thats not him.

And the character says, Its close.

Its not hardcore violence, but Ray does get himself into a bit of women trouble this season.

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How did you figure out just how far you wanted to take that?

That would be the goal.

The humor on this show really runs the gamut from very clever to the old classic of bathroom humor.

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LORRE: Well, it is part of being a human being.

We have these biological processes that we have to deal with.

But how do you know?

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Its always a guessing game.

You just go, This feels right, and you trust that feeling.

Thats how I go for it.

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Theres no way to absolutely know these things.

Theres a lot of guessing and trust that it feels right, so you trust the feeling.

Someone might disagree with you, but thats okay.

Chuck Lorre

People will disagree with you.

People will watch something that I think is wonderfully funny and think its horrible.

Is this a world that you would like to keep exploring?

LORRE: I think its wide open for so many more stories.

Butwhether there are more stories to tell, thats up to other people.

Its not up to me.

Make a phone call to HBO and Max or whoever and tell them.

I dont know how this works.

After all these years, I still dont know how those decisions get made.

Somebody is gonna make that decision, hopefully sooner rather than later.

What do you think it is about stand-up comics that translates to onscreen comedy?

What makes her special?

LORRE: Leanne has this remarkable honesty about her act.

Her stand-up is unlike anything Ive seen in so long.

Its entirely family friendly without being cloying.

Ive never seen anything quite like it.

Its small, intimate family theater.

Previously, the comedian released a special titled ‘Leanne Morgan: So Yummy’ on YouTube.

You mentioned never knowing whether something will work or if something is going to be funny.

LORRE: Sebastian is a different story.

I didnt know how to translate Sebastians act into a series.

I really didnt know where that began.

I just dont know how to do that.

Other people do, but I dont.

And he said, A bookie.

And I went, Yeah, thats exactly the right tone for a small-time criminal.

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Cast

Bookieis available to stream on Max.

Check out the Season 2 trailer: