Real Time with Bill Maher is an American television talk show created, written and presented by Bill Maher, and has been airing on HBO since 2003, with an audio-only podcast, with episodes at least since 2015. Much like his previous series Politically Incorrect on Comedy Central and later on ABC, Real Time features a panel of guests who discuss current events in politics and the media. Unlike the previous show, guests are usually better versed in the subject matter; more experts such as journalists, professors, and politicians participate in the panel, and fewer actors and celebrities are included.
Real Time is a weekly hour-long program with a studio audience, and is broadcast from Studio 33 (The Price Is Right studio) at Television City in Los Angeles. Prior to Season 20, the program aired live on Friday nights at 10:00pm ET, however, it is now pre-recorded at 7:00pm ET. In addition, a 10–15-minute "Overtime" segment quickly follows the show on YouTube live stream, which answers questions posted by viewers through HBO's online website for the show. The Overtime segment was added to CNN Tonight programming in 2023.
The twenty-fourth season premiered on January 23, 2026. In January 2026, HBO announced that the series had been renewed for two additional seasons, keeping the show on the air through its twenty-sixth season, which will run through the end of 2028. After appearing on HBO on Fridays, Real Time is re-broadcast on CNN on Saturdays.Shanfeld, Ethan. "Bill Maher’s ‘Real Time’ Renewed Through 2028 at HBO", Variety (7 Jan 2026).Iyer, Kaanita. "Bill Maher to receive Mark Twain Prize at Kennedy Center after White House denied reports", CNN (26 Mar 2026).
Format The opening sequence contains a theme song composed by Scott "Shavoni" Parker, Christopher "Kid" Reid and Louis Brown. A montage of animated graphics with political and cultural themes surrounded by splashes of color accompanies the music. Season 21 features an updated version of the theme song performed by Green Day.
The show opens with a comedy monologue performed by Maher, followed by a one-on-one interview with a prominent guest. Maher then engages with two or three additional panel guests, who partake in various discussions and debates. Midway through the panel session, Maher performs a comedic bit that typically satirizes a notable current event. The final segment of each episode is entitled "New Rules" and contains an array of editorials related to popular culture and American politics. The final "New Rule" serves as Maher's closing editorial monologue. While the aforementioned format is typically followed, Maher states that it is not entirely rigid and has also indicated that he prefers in-studio interviews to satellite interviews.
Since the show airs on HBO, Maher and his guests are allowed to use profane language, a significant departure from the broadcast standards that existed on Politically Incorrect. Graphics displayed throughout the show may also contain some uncensored content.
During the first season, Paul F. Tompkins was featured as a correspondent, and each episode would conclude with a performance by a stand-up comedian. The segments featuring Tompkins and the stand-up comedians were dropped after episode 10. Viewers were also able to engage over the air during the first season by calling in live, but this practice was subsequently discontinued.
Starting with episode 67, audio-only versions of the show were made available as free podcasts via the iTunes Store and as raw RSS feeds. The podcasts may also feature bonus material taped during studio rehearsal, such as additional "New Rules" that were not included in the final broadcast.
During Season 4, Maher began hosting a live chat (now called "Overtime") with his guests immediately following each broadcast. Viewers are invited to submit questions and topics for Maher and the other participants to answer and discuss. This post-show event was initially featured on HBO's website and is currently broadcast on CNN.
Politics and current events
Maher has been a critic of the Obama administration, the Bush administration and the Trump administration. His panel attempts to present a diverse set of views. Frequently, it consists of a liberal commentator or political figure, a conservative commentator or political figure, and a third individual who does not have as clear an ideological label, or someone with moderate beliefs. This third individual is often an actor, comedian, musician, or other entertainment figure, though many times the commentator is openly conservative or liberal.
On his previous TV series, Politically Incorrect, Maher used the word "libertarian" to describe his political leanings. Regarding religion, he considers himself a "rationalist", as someone "preaching the gospel of 'I don't know."Religulous" Maher identifies himself as politically unaffiliated and disagrees with the Republican party on many issues, and with the Democratic Party on many of their party platform's planks. He endorsed the candidacy of Ralph Nader of the Green Party during his 2000 presidential campaign. After the 2000 election, Maher was among those who felt that votes cast by progressives for Nader possibly cost Democratic candidate Al Gore the election, and put George W. Bush in the White House. During an episodeSeason 2, episode 11 on which Nader and Michael Moore were guests, both Maher and Moore begged Nader not to run again in 2004. Maher endorsed Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry leading up to the 2004 presidential election. In 2008, he endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and harshly criticized Republican candidate John McCain's political campaign. He also heavily criticized McCain's vice presidential pick, Sarah Palin, on her qualifications and intelligence. Maher interviewed then presidential-candidate, Republican Ron Paul, giving him some positive air time. He often cites Paul's views in order to demonstrate the diversity of views on the right. Maher has used Real Time to bring voters attention to current political races. In 2014, Real Time launched a campaign called "Flip a district." The objective was for Real Time's audience to directly affect the outcome of an upcoming congressional race where Maher felt the incumbent candidate had voted or behaved badly. The show's executive producer Scott Carter told the New York Times that they were considering both Republicans and Democrats but "with our viewers voting, I imagine it is much more likely we will pick a Republican." Republican Minnesota Rep. John Kline was eventually selected but was not unseated in that election despite the Real Time campaign.
Maher has strong opinions on US drug policy, advocating for the legalization of marijuana. He is against censorship, often citing his own dismissal from ABC and the backlash against the Dixie Chicks for their comments on the Iraq War. He is also against conservative attitudes towards sex and sexuality, mocking outrages over the Clinton–Lewinsky scandal and Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction". He is also not shy about his lack of religious beliefs and he frequently criticizes religion. He is widely known for his support of animal rights groups such as PETA. Hot-button political issues such as health care, corporate influence in government, illegal immigration, the environment, entitlement programs, and human service regulations are frequently discussed on the show.
Christine O'Donnell On September 17, 2010, Maher aired a clip of Delaware Republican Senatorial candidate Christine O'Donnell from the October 29, 1999, episode of his prior TV series Politically Incorrect, where she discussed that she had "dabbled in witchcraft". This was perhaps the most notable of numerous controversial statements by O'Donnell that made her the most covered candidate in the 2010 mid-term election cycle. O'Donnell went on to film a rebuttal commercial claiming "I'm not a witch, I'm you." This ad inspired many video parodies and O'Donnell later said that the ad backfired and focused attention on her decade-old statement. O'Donnell lost to her Democratic opponent, Chris Coons, in the general election. On the September 7, 2012, episode of Real Time with Bill Maher, O'Donnell appeared on the show for the first time and resolved the issue with Maher, who apologized for the amount of publicity that the clip garnered. Maher said that he would not have aired the clip if he knew that it would have taken away from the message of her campaign.
Changes in 2008 The show returned on January 11, 2008, and began broadcasting in high definition, with updates to the set for HD display.
As a result of the writers' strike, in Season 6, the opening skit, the "New Rules" segment, and the closing monologue were eliminated for five episodes at the beginning of the year. The ice breaker used in the middle of the show (normally a fake products sketch tying into a current event) was also eliminated due to the strike. The announcement that Real Time would return without writers indicated that the opening monologue would also be cut, but every episode included a full monologue. The initial season finale of Season Five was to air on November 9, 2007, and was to feature Ben Affleck, George Carlin, and Tom Brokaw as guests, but was canceled due to the strike.
During the strike, the "Overtime" concept became part of the live show itself, through a new segment called "Blogga, Please!". Using HBO's website, viewers were able to leave comments or questions during the live show. Maher and the panel then responded to selected postings at the end of the show. The "Blogga, Please!" segment was discontinued, and "New Rules" brought back, on February 15 following the resolution of the strike. Additionally, during the strike, Maher aired pre-recorded interviews by himself with everyday people about the election and other issues after the opening monologue.
Established early on, the final "New Rule" served as a segue into the closing monologue. On the March 7 episode, the closing monologue returned to the format of the show. The opening skits did not reappear, except for April 4 and 11, 2008.
Instead of doing a second satellite interview near the forty-minute mark, the January 11 episode also featured the debut of the "Real Time Real Reporter", a blogger or political pundit who is brought on midway through the show as an extra panelist to offer opinions on the latest election campaign happenings. Such correspondents have included Matt Taibbi, Frank Luntz, Amy Holmes, P. J. O'Rourke, and Dan Savage.
Changes in 2009 The 2009 premiere was on February 20 at the earlier time of 10:00pm EST. The opening sequence was also slightly changed to include then President-elect Barack Obama and his family waving to a crowd of supporters on election night in November 2008.
Also, the show aired one continuous season as opposed to airing episodes in the spring and fall with a summer break in between.