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Was Ken Jennings Not The 'First Choice' For Jeopardy! Host? Explored
Reports reveal that Ken Jennings was not the first choice for Jeopardy! host, stepping into the role only after Mike Richards and Mayim Bialik exited.
Jeopardy! faced a major setback with the passing of its long-term show host, Alex Trebek, who died in 2020 because of pancreatic cancer. Trebek hosted the show for 37 seasons since its revival in 1984. The loss of the show's constant face brought instability to the show, raising questions about his new host. For now, the show is being run by its former participant and record holder, Ken Jennings.
However, as per the recent reports, it is revealed that Jennings was not the first preference of the makers. The makers eventually settled with him after the exit of Mike Richards and Mayim Bialik. The makers have not yet decided whether or not Jennings will serve as the long-term host for the show or not.
Ken Jennings was not the first choice of makers as the host of Jeopardy!
After the passing of Trebek, the show experienced multiple guest hosts, which included Jennings as well. After the run of these guest hosts, the makers decided to make Mike Richards the new permanent host of the show. However, after his week run on the show, Richards had to leave his position because of the controversy surrounding his past sexist remarks.
Post his exit, the show was being led by Mayim Bialik and Jennings on a rotational basis. However, Bialik eventually decided to leave the show in late 2023, leaving Jennings as the single host for the gaming show and its other forms of media. This makes it clear that despite the availability of Jennings, he was never the maker's first choice.
The prime reason behind this is reasoned with the fact that the audience didn’t much appreciate Jennings' strict hosting style on the show during his brief hosting gig, despite his expertise in trivia. A source revealed to The U.S. Sun that both makers and Ken himself are trying to ease his on-screen camera, by making his hosting fun. However, it is pretty difficult to run a technical show as of Jeopardy! with a twist of fun in it.
“To his credit, Ken is self-aware and knows his issues are always going to be how his personality reads on camera. And not his proven expertise with trivia or with the Jeopardy! game itself. Ken knows this, Sony knows this, and everybody knows this is the reason he was never the first choice to replace Alex Trebek. He got this job because the other candidates didn't work out, and Ken is at peace with that,” the source stated.
Ken Jennings manages to pull Jeopardy! alone
The source further added the difficulty of fulfilling the responsibilities of being the sole host of Jeopardy!, revealing that Jennings has somehow been able to pull this all off. Apart from twice weekly shoots, with each day covering five games, Jennings is also responsible for delivering pep talks at audience recruiting events, amid the show’s major transition from Alex’s successful era.
Ken Jennings also has to take care of the various merchandising and spinoffs of the show, which are attributed to the equivalent importance of keeping the business in profits. The source revealed that when Mayim Bialik left the show all alone on the shoulders of Jennings in 2023, it made Sony pretty nervous about the show’s future. But luckily things are going pretty well, as Jennings managed to get his work done and the show has started witnessing positive ratings.
“Even the transition from Mayim Bialik and Ken sharing hosting duties to just Ken having the job made Sony nervous. But Ken has shown that he can handle the job alone, and the ratings have backed that up. As long as the ratings hold and he doesn't make any major public gaffes, Sony will stick with him, haters be damned,” the source added.
Well, it seems like things for now are turning in the favor of the show’s new host, Ken Jennings. Despite being criticized by the public, Jennings managed to fulfill his hosting duties diligently. Jeopardy! airs its new episode every weekday on NBC.
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