After just six months on the air, Charles Barkley and Gayle King’s weekly talk show on CNN has come to a sudden end. Despite their star power and credentials, the show, titled ‘King Charles’, struggled to attract viewers and failed to gain momentum.
When ‘King Charles’ was first announced in late 2023, CNN revealed that it would only run for a limited time, indicating that it would conclude by early spring. Airing on Wednesday nights at 10 pm ET, the show faced tough competition from popular sitcom reruns and other series that overshadowed it in terms of viewership.
Data from Nielsen further highlighted the show’s challenges, showing that ‘King Charles’ had the lowest-rated prime time weeknight series debut on CNN in the past decade. Despite the promising start with 500,000 viewers for its first episode, the viewership plummeted by approximately 20 percent since its premiere.
Sources cited by the New York Post suggest that Barkley’s busy schedule posed a significant challenge to the show’s production. As an NBA analyst, Barkley was only available for filming on Wednesdays, limiting the show’s ability to adapt and respond to audience feedback.
While the end of ‘King Charles’ is disappointing for Barkley and King, it emphasizes the difficulties in creating successful television programming, even with high-profile hosts. Both Barkley and King are likely to explore new opportunities that capitalize on their individual strengths and appeal to a wider audience.
