Ken Jennings’ solo hosting gig for the upcoming season of “Celebrity Jeopardy!” was praised by fans as the show released a new poster promoting the show.
Jennings’ co-host Mayim Bialik will not take the podium for the new season due to the ongoing writers strike, according to Variety. Jennings and Bialik were named the new hosts of the popular game show after the death of Alex Trebek in 2020.
However, fans have mixed feelings about Bialik’s hosting abilities, and some even prefer Jennings.
MAYIM BIALIK REPLACED BY KEN JENNINGS AS ‘CELEBRITY JEOPARDY!’ HOST AS HOLLYWOOD STRIKE CONTINUES
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“Great to see Ken, love him hosting,” one fan wrote on the Instagram post featuring the new poster.
Ken Jennings will host “Celebrity Jeopardy!” solo amid the ongoing Hollywood strikes. (Raymond Liu/ABC)
“Ken all day everyday please,” another fan added.
“Woo hoo Ken Jennings,” one said. “He is the best! Love that smile.”
“can’t wait to welcome back the best host Ken!!” another wrote.
Ken Jennings took over hosting duties for “Celebrity Jeopardy!” from Mayim Bialik. (Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images/Tyler Golden/ABC via Getty Images)
“Now that Mayim isn’t hosting I can watch this,” one user wrote, referencing Bialik’s decision to step back from hosting duties amid the ongoing Hollywood strikes.
“I might actually watch it now that [Bialik] isn’t hosting,” another added.
Mayim Bialik is not a fan favorite when it comes to “Jeoaprdy!” hosts. (Getty Images)
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“Jeopardy!” has always stood behind Bialik as a hosting choice.
“Mayim and Ken are both extraordinarily talented and simply lovely humans,” Michael Davies, the show’s executive producer, previously said. “They support the staff and each other. They love and respect this institution of a television program. In return, the staff and I are honored to work alongside them.”
Before Bialik and Jennings took over, the show was hosted by Trebek – whose tenure at the game show spanned 37 seasons. After a long battle with pancreatic cancer, the 80-year-old died in November 2020.
“Jeopardy!” has been co-hosted by Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik since Alex Trebek’s death in 2020. (Christopher Willar/Tyler Golden )
Jennings’ decision to remain filming “Jeopardy!” amid the writers strike has been criticized online, with one X user writing, “You’re a disgrace if you’re trying to cross picket lines. Alex [Trebek] would NEVER do anything of the sort. He would turn over his grave seeing you act like that.”
The former “Jeopardy!” champion defended the move by sharing a screenshot of a statement previously shared by the show with The Hollywood Reporter.
Ken Jennings is known for breaking records during his time as a “Jeopardy!” contestant. (Maarten de Boer)
“‘Jeopardy!’ has a long history with and tremendous respect for the WGA and our writers. We have always been careful to honor our WGA agreement, and we would never air game material not created by WGA (Writer’s Guild of America) writers,” the statement said.
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Jennings highlighted a specific part of the statement that read, “However, just as we did, led by Alex Trebek, during the 2007-2008 strike, we will deliver first-run episodes again this fall to more than 200 affiliate stations nationwide.”
