Ken Jennings ‘caught off guard’ by Mayim Bialik’s ‘Jeopardy!’ ouster

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Ken Jennings has broken his silence on Mayim Bialik’s Jeopardy! ousting, saying he is “gonna miss her” after his co-host was fired earlier this month.

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“It took me off guard, because I loved working with my Mayim and I’m gonna miss her,” Jennings, 49, says in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter to promote the return of Celebrity Jeopardy! next week. “I can’t speak to her decision-making process or her opinions about it.”

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On Reddit, viewers praised Jennings for his politeness towards Bialik, but several noted that he was more than ready to take on the front-facing job full time.

Others said that Bialik never seemed comfortable behind the lectern. “Mayim, although obviously an intelligent woman, often had an annoying pause before confirming whether the responses were right or wrong,” one person wrote.

On Dec. 15, Bialik revealed the show’s producers had let her go in an Instagram post shared with her followers.

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“Sony has informed me that I will no longer be hosting the syndicated version of Jeopardy!” Bialik wrote. “I am incredibly honored to have been nominated for a primetime Emmy for hosting this year and I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of the Jeopardy! family.”

A spokesperson left the door open for Bialik’s return in primetime, but said that awarding Jennings the gig was done “to maintain continuity for our viewers.”

“We are truly grateful for all of Mayim’s contributions to Jeopardy!, and we hope to continue to work with her on primetime specials,” they said in a statement to Variety.

Since Season 40 of the syndicated program kicked off in September, Jennings has fronted the show all by himself.

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Bialik and Jennings had split hosting duties on the long-running game show since 2021 following the 2020 death of longtime personality Alex Trebek. Jennings also took over as the face of Celebrity Jeopardy! as well after Bialik declared her support for the then-ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

Last year, fans of the show reacted angrily when producers announced the pair would continue to divide up their on-air duties.

“We have so much Jeopardy! to make, and so many plans for the future, that we always knew we would need multiple hosts for the franchise and we are just so grateful that Mayim and Ken stepped in and stepped up to put the show in a position to succeed,” executive producer Michael Davies said in a message posted to the official Jeopardy! site.

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But the news landed with a soft thud on social media as dozens slammed the decision to keep Bialik in the fold for Season 39.

“Good that we won’t have to endure Mayim for the first half of the season, but we’ll have to put (up) with her or tune (in) to something else after that,” one person wrote with another labelling the decision a “terrible idea.”

“Ken should be the only host,” they wrote. “He knows the game better, he’s more knowledgeable and he deserves it. I will only watch when he’s hosting. I like her as a comedian and actor, NOT a host. I’m very disappointed.”

“I am permanently not watching,” a third fan declared, with a fourth person jabbing, “she’s a mess.”

In his interview with THR, Jennings said that he was “delighted” to be asked to host.

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“I just feel extremely lucky to have even been considered for this job as a non-broadcaster,” the winningest contestant in the show’s history said. “It’s kind of a weird thing to try to bring back an ex-contestant to host, and I’ve obviously been learning as I go. But I loved growing up with Jeopardy! where Alex was the host of that show for almost 38 years, and people just kind of felt like he was part of their family, and it’s impossible to fill those shoes. But it’s such an honour and hopefully I look forward to 37 more years of doing it, when I’ll be a very, very old man.”

mdaniell@postmedia.com

X: @markhdaniell

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