Mike Richards has officially stepped down as the new ‘Jeopardy!’ host following resurfaced offensive and sexist comments. Here’s who will host now.
Entertainment “It pains me that these past incidents and comments have cast such a shadow on Jeopardy! as we look to start a new chapter.” Mike Richards stepped down as the new permanent host of Jeopardy! less than two weeks after he was confirmed for the role. On Aug.18, The Ringer reported that the game show’s executive producer repeatedly made sexist and fatphobic comments toward women as well as offensive remarks toward the Jewish and Asian communities, little people, and mentally disabled people on his podcast The Randumb Show from 2013 to 2014. Richards swiftly issued an apology, but on Aug.19, the Anti-Defamation League called for an investigation, claiming that his statement failed to acknowledge the harm he’d caused. Despite the controversy, Richards was set to continue as the executive producer of Jeopardy! — until he officially stepped down on Aug.31. Richards was set to become the legendary game show’s first permanent host since Alex Trebeck passed away last November at age 80 due to pancreatic cancer. In a now-viral interview with TMZ conducted in 2018, Trebek listed L.A. Kings hockey announcer and Alex Faust and CNN anchor Laura Coates as two potential successors for his position. However, neither candidate was selected for the show’s rotating list of individuals that assumed hosting duties after Trebek’s final episodes aired in January 2021. Such guest hosts included memorable Jeopardy! contestant Ken Jennings, Richards, Katie Couric, CBS’s Bill Whitaker, Savannah Guthrie, Sanjay Gupta, Anderson Cooper, NFL star Aaron Rodgers, Dr. Oz, The Big Bang Theory star Mayim Bialik, ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts, Reading Rainbow ’s LeVar Burton, CNBC’s David Faber, Fox Sports’ Joe Buck, and Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions winner Buzzy Cohen. According to The Ringer,74-time consecutive Jeopardy! winner Jennings taped six weeks of episodes before a minor conflict led Richards to step in and assume hosting duties himself. Richards reportedly exaggerated the nature of the conflict and blamed the switch on the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking to the publication, Jennings said, “Obviously I’m disappointed with how this process played out, but I’d rather look ahead. I plan to be with the show as long as they’ll have me, no matter who’s hosting.” On Aug.11, Sony Pictures announced that Richards would become the game show’s new permanent host, while Bialik would host the series’ primetime specials as well as a spinoff show. Fans immediately began expressing outrage at the announcement, speculating that his executive producer role allowed him the final say on the guest-hosted episodes given to focus groups for testing. The New York Times confirmed the theory on Aug.14, reporting that Richards alone selected the episodes with no input from Lisa Broffman and Rocky Schmidt, the show’s supervising producers of four decades. According to a Morning Consult poll published on Aug.17, Richards was not the top-choice host among Jeopardy! viewers. In fact, Burton was the clear frontrunner with 14% of the votes, and Bialik ranked second with 13%. Richards only received 3%. Shortly after Richards stepped down from the gig in the wake of the controversy, Burton tweeted what fans perceived as shade towards the executive producer: “Happy Friday, y’all!” While he was an executive producer on The Price is Right, Richards hosted The Randumb Show from 2013 to 2014, as reported by The Ringer.
