Posted in: Max, TV | Tagged: Bookie, charlie sheen, max, Nick Bakay

Bookie Season 2: Nick Bakay Talks Charlie Sheen Return, Guest Stars

Bookie co-creator Nick Bakay on warm reception to Charlie Sheen's appearance, his season two return, and more surprise guest stars.

There are plenty of surprises to come in the Chuck Lorre and Nick Bakay Max comedy Bookie, including perhaps a not-so-surprising return of Charlie Sheen, reprising his role as himself, for the Sebastian Maniscalco-starred series. Maniscalco plays Danny, a bookie who romps around Los Angeles alongside his partner, former NFL star Ray (Omar J. Dorsey), romp around Los Angeles to keep their illegal sports betting operation in play. Season two, which premiered on December 12th, will run for eight episodes leading to the season finale on January 30th.

Bookie Co-Creator Nick Bakay Reflects on Warm Reception for Charlie Sheen's Season 1 Appearance and Return

"Charlie was such a home run for us in season one, we thought we'd extend the metaphor a little," Bakay told Deadline Hollywood. "I don't want to spoil things, but I refer to his arrival this season as Deus Ex Sheen. He is forever a part of the Bookie family." Suffice it to say, it appears any grievances with Lorre are water under the bridge after the actor's meltdown on Two and a Half Men. In addition to Sheen, there's a variety of A-list sitcom stars, including the two major stars of Everybody Loves Raymond – Ray Romano and Brad Garrett – and Ghosts star Asher Grodman.

Bakay called Garrett's appearance "a perfect example of one of the unique aspects of our show. Since Sebastian and Omar are Bookies plying their trade in contemporary L.A., it's organic that they would have some celebrity clients. The next step is finding people who are willing to have fun with that premise and themselves, which Brad did and crushed it for us." Perhaps one of the biggest surprises was Scrubs star Zach Braff.

"The timing was kinda perfect as Chuck and I were in the midst of cooking up scripts, and we tailored an over-the-top tout selling NFL picks with a crazy rap for him, one of those guys who promises he has a 90% win rate and guarantees you the good life," Bakay said of Braff after he shared how much he enjoyed season one. "Needless to say, that was a particularly fun day on set." Bookie, which also stars Andrea Anders, Maxim Swinton, Vanessa Ferlito, Jorge Garcia, Rob Corddry, and Paul Ben-Victor, streams on Thursdays on Max.

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