Alex Trebek's Jeopardy was named just over a week ago! Mike Richards, executive producer, has taken over the role.
Richards was hired after a rotating cast of celebrities hosted Jeopardy! including fans like LeVar Burton, Ken Jennings and others. Long-time viewers of the program were skeptical of Richards' hiring. They also found evidence of his toxic leadership at The Price is Right.
The Ringer published interviews from Richards' staffers over the years on August 18. Also, inappropriate comments made by Richards himself on his podcast in 2013-2014 were published. Two days later, he announced that he would stop hosting.
"It hurts me that these past comments and incidents have cast such an ugly shadow on Jeopardy!" Richards released a statement saying that we are beginning a new chapter. "...it is clear that it would be distracting for our fans to continue hosting the show and not the right decision for the show.
Jeopardy! In the interim, guest hosts will be back while the search continues for a permanent syndicated host or restarts. Sony confirmed Richards' status as executive producer, and released the following statement:
We support Mike's decision to resign as host. This week, we were shocked to hear about Mike's podcast from 2013/2014 and the offensive language that he used in the past. We spoke with him about our concerns, and what we expect moving forward.
Mike has been with us the past two years and has been the Jeopardy! leader. The most difficult time in show history was for the team. We hope that he will carry on his role as EP with professionalism, respect, and a sense of humor.
Updated at 11:26 a.m. ET with Sony statement.
