HBO Lands Bill Simmons with Its ‘Gobs and Gobs of Money’
Photo via AP
Former ESPN personality Bill Simmons will join HBO starting in October, the multimedia behemoth announced in a press release Wednesday.
Simmons, mastermind behind ESPN’s wildly successful sports documentary series 30 for 30 and standalone blog Grantland, will host a weekly talk show, as well as a video podcast.
“We have been fans of Bill Simmons and his work for a very long time,” Michael Lombardo, HBO’s president for programming, said in a statement. “His intelligence, talent and insights are without precedent in the areas he covers. We could not be more thrilled for him to bring those talents to HBO and to become a signature voice at the network, spanning the sports and pop culture landscapes.”
“It’s no secret that HBO is the single best place for creative people in the entire media landscape,” said Simmons, who noted in 2013 that HBO is a good place for “gobs and gobs of money” too.
Simmons and ESPN parted ways in May following a series of spats with the Disney-owned company’s leadership. In September, Simmons criticized NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s handling of his league’s domestic abuse problem, calling him “a liar.” For this, ESPN suspended Simmons three weeks.
Simmons, a Marlborough native and alum of both Holy Cross and Boston University, got his start in Boston. His pioneering blog BostonSportsGuy.com earned him a job at the “Worldwide Leader in Sports” in 2001 after stints at the Boston Herald and Phoenix.
