Earlier this week, Jeopardy! announced that it would have not one but two new hosts on the game show, and host Mayim Bialik will be making millions for working just part-time.
The popular trivia show has been on the hunt for its newest full-time host since Alex Trebek passed away in November 2020. It was recently revealed that the show’s executive producer Mike Richards would be hired to replace Trebek’s position. However, there is a catch.
Richards is taking over the syndicated daily show, but he wasn’t the showrunners first choice supposedly. Instead, Sony Pictures executives preferred actress Mayim Bialik as the next permanent host. Unfortunately for them though, Bialik had to reject the full-time position since she’s simply too busy for the gig.
Bialik executive produces and stars in the FOX show Call Me Kat, and hosts her own podcast. Therefore she rejected the permanent Jeopardy! role because of her busy schedule. Yet Sony execs liked her so much that they created a second part-time gig just for her. Bialik will now host the primetime special events on the game show. In addition, she will host a brand new spin-off show titled Jeopardy!: National College Championship.
The former Big Bang Theory and Blossom actress became a priority for the game show’s executives. They wanted her involved in the show in whatever capacity they could work out. After six weeks of negotiations between Bialik and Sony, the actress reached a multi-year, multi-million dollar deal to become a part-time Jeopardy! host.
That’s right. Not only will Bialik be able to continue working on her other gigs, but she’s getting paid millions to pop in occasionally and host arguably the most popular game show on American TV. Not a bad deal at all if you’re Mayim Bialik.
‘Jeopardy!’ Host Mayim Bialik Didn’t Think She Would Get the Job
On Wednesday, reports revealed that two Jeopardy! hosts would take the reins of the game show. But Mayim Bialik fully admits she believed that only one host would get the job, and she didn’t think that someone would be herself.
The former Jeopardy! guest host spoke about her selection as a part-time host in a clip she posted on Twitter. Bialik thanked everyone for their support and shared her excitement to take on the position.
“Thank you, everybody! It’s been a very exciting and overwhelming day, but in a very good way,” Bialik said in a video on Twitter.
Bialik also revealed that she talked to Mike Richards about their hiring. The actress admitted she thought that Richards would get the job all along.
“I spoke to Mike Richards, who is my fellow host of Jeopardy! now. That was really awesome to get to tell him how I thought all along that he was gonna be the host!” Bialik revealed.
