The guests have been announced for Bill Simmons’ new HBO show Any Given Wednesday, and he’s got some marquee names to go along with his program. According to a press release, his guests will include Ben Affleck and NBA commentator and hall of famer Charles Barkley.

Those are good names! The question is how he will handle them. With Barkley, you can always count on a lively conversation, but Affleck is a different story. It would be great if Simmons grilled him on the performance of Batman v Superman and asked about his future superhero projects or even making the transition from acting to directing. But my gut feeling tells me they’re just going to talk about how much they love Boston sports teams, which makes for a dull interview unless you too love Boston sports teams.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Check out the press release below. Any Given Wednesday premieres June 22nd at 10:00pm on HBO.

ANY GIVEN WEDNESDAY WITH BILL SIMMONS, a weekly talk show hosted by one of the most influential figures in contemporary sports media, kicks off its 20-show season WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22 (10:00–10:30 p.m. ET/PT), followed by other new editions subsequent Wednesdays at the same time, exclusively on HBO.

 

Spanning pop culture and touching on everything from sports and entertainment to arts and technology, the show will feature intimate conversations with compelling guests each week, while also including field segments and Simmons’ signature commentary on current events. Guests on the first show include actor Ben Affleck and NBA commentator and hall of famer Charles Barkley.

 

Other HBO playdates: June 23 (1:15 p.m., midnight), 24 (9:00 a.m., 3:05 a.m.) and 26 (9:15 a.m.)

 

HBO2 playdates: June 22 (11:00 p.m.), 23 (8:50 a.m.), 25 (11:30 a.m.), 27 (2:30 a.m.) and 28 (11:45 p.m.)

 

ANY GIVEN WEDNESDAY WITH BILL SIMMONS will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO and HBO On Demand, as well as other affiliate portals.

 

The show is part of a major exclusive multi-year, multi-platform agreement with HBO that was announced in 2015. Making HBO Simmons’ exclusive television home, the deal provides for a comprehensive partnership on a variety of platforms between the network and Simmons, the founding editor of Grantland.com and the creator of the new content site The Ringer.

 

ANY GIVEN WEDNESDAY WITH BILL SIMMONS is executive produced by Bill Simmons, Eric Weinberger and Stuart Miller.

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Image via Warner Bros.
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Image via Warner Bros.
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Image via Warner Bros.