“Jeopardy!” has finally announced its new permanent host — er, hosts, in a bit of a plot twist — and it’s not LeVar Burton. And as expected, fans have some feelings about this one.
For the most part, those feelings are sadness and/or anger. Burton has been openly campaigning for the job for months now, with steady fan support. When he was announced as a guest host, many hoped that it was an indicator of more to come — at least until Mike Richards was announced as the frontrunner for the permanent gig last week.
Unfortunately, Burton’s week on “Jeopardy!” pulled the lowest ratings of any guest host. Of course, that was largely because his shows landed square in the middle of the Tokyo Olympics. “Jeopardy!” was even temporarily renamed “Jeopardy-Olym” to reflect the extra layer of competition from the games.
So, when it was announced on Wednesday that Richards had officially been chosen to host the daily game show, with “The Big Bang Theory” star Mayim Bialik tapped to host primetime specials and spinoffs, LeVar Burton fans were gutted.
Some were fine with Bialik landing part of the gig, but lamented that she and Burton would’ve made a better team than her and Richards.
Others felt that Burton was simply the obvious choice. “Levar burton [sic] was still right there,” Candice Frederick tweeted. Some voiced the hope that Burton could create his own game show and host that instead. That includes director Ava DuVernay, who is more than willing to help him craft one.
For his part, Burton himself has been gracious. Though he had not posted any reactions to Richards and Bialik being chosen at the time of this writing, Burton did post a message to his followers on Twitter on Aug. 5, expressing his gratitude for the outpouring of support he received in his “Jeopardy!” endeavors.
“I have said many times over these past weeks that no matter the outcome, I’ve won,” Burton tweeted. “The outpouring of love and support from family, friends, and fans alike has been incredible! If love is the ultimate blessing and I believe that it is, I am truly blessed beyond measure.”
You can check out more reactions to LeVar Burton’s “Jeopardy!” snub below.
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