“Jeopardy!” fans are not happy that the show’s executive producer, Mike Richards, is in talks to become the permanent host of the show.
This past week, it was rumored that Richards “is in advanced negotiations with Sony Pictures Television” for the job.
“We are declining comment at this time,” a show spokesperson told TODAY.
Richards was the second person to fill in as a guest host this season, which has featured a cast of people following the death of Alex Trebek, who hosted over 8,000 “Jeopardy!” episodes.
Many users were quick to share their dismay online.
One user joked: “‘I’m the right person for this extremely lucrative job,’says guy who is in charge of finding the right person for this extremely lucrative job.”
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While another commented: “This is what rubs me the wrong way the most about this choice. All these months of guests hosts and variety, just to pick the safest and most generic choice possible. The show probably won’t die or anything, but this whole rollout has just been awful and I’m almost checked out of the show. I pretty much only tune in to discussion threads to see the results and adjust my leaderboard accordingly.”
Followed by: “It’s… Ok? I guess. Underwhelming….I’m not going to stop watching. I would be fine with almost any of the guests getting the job. Most of them were more than acceptable. Mike was fine. It’s just an entirely underwhelming and unexciting decision.”
While other users speculated the future: “They may not be getting the full-time gig but if they’re willing, the consolation prize I’d like to see for the more eager of the guest hosts (specifically Mayim, LeVar and Buzzy) could be that they’re brought back every year for the various special event weeks. For example, Mayim could host Celebrity Jeopardy, LeVar the College and/or Teen Tournaments and Buzzy could host the Tournament of Champions every year.”
Richards has yet to say who will replace Trebek.
“It’s going to come down to the heads of Sony (Entertainment) to make that decision, ultimately, and it’ll come down to testing,” he told The Wall Street Journal’s podcast in late April.
“They’ve been a part of it. They know what’s going on in the studio. They’re watching the feed, the tapings. It’s very extensive. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever been a part of, as far as testing in its size and scope.”