‘Jeopardy!’: Why Mayim Bialik May Be Missing from Show for Months

Martin Holmes August 17, 2023, 8:47 am

It might be a long time until we see Mayim Bialik back as Jeopardy! host as Season 40 began filming on Tuesday (August 15) amid the ongoing Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

In fact, the busy actress might not be back behind the lectern until a long way into 2024 if the writers’ strike isn’t resolved quickly.

Bialik, who takes turns hosting the long-running game show with Ken Jennings, stepped away at the end of Season 39 in solidarity with the strikes as Jeopardy! uses WGA writers. Jennings filled in for his co-host for the final week of tapings, which led to backlash from some fans and former players who referred to the former Jeopardy! champ as a “scab” for crossing the picket line.

Jennings and Bialik were officially announced as the show’s new hosts in July 2022 following the passing of Alex Trebek. The pair split duties hosting the main syndicated show while also both hosting additional Jeopardy! spin-offs. Jennings hosted Season 39 from its September 2022 premiere through December, while at the same time, Bialik hosted Celebrity Jeopardy! in prime time.

Bialik then took over the Season 39 syndicated show from January until she bowed out due to the strikes. In addition, the Big Bang Theory alum hosted the Jeopardy! National College Championships in February 2002 and the High School Reunion tournament in February 2023.

Meanwhile, Jennings led Jeopardy! Second Chance in October 2022, the Tournament of Champions in November 2022, and Jeopardy! Masters in May 2023.

However, the past few months have seen much debate within the Jeopardy! community over whether the show should continue while the strikes are ongoing. Showrunner Michael Davies provided an answer to that question earlier this month when he confirmed Season 40 would go ahead with recycled questions and material written pre-strike.

Season 40, which is set to premiere on September 11, will begin with a Second Chance tournament featuring contestants from Season 37. This will be followed by a Champions Wild Card tournament, where the winners of the Second Chance competition will face off against Season 38 champs.

With the writers’ strike ongoing, there has been no announcement about plans to return to regular editions of the show with new contestants battling it out against each other. Also, tapings of any of the planned spinoff shows have seemingly been put on ice, too.

Further complicating matters is the fact that Bialik has acting commitments that she will need to address when everyone returns to work, and she may end up having to choose between taping Jeopardy! and an acting role.

Despite mounting pressure for Jennings to join Bialik on the picket line, reports state that the Jeopardy! GOAT was at the Season 40 tapings, which began on Tuesday. According to The U.S. Sun, Jennings entered the studio through an entrance that didn’t require him to walk past the protestors and former players who were picketing outside.

'Jeopardy!': Ken Jennings Reacts After Fan Blasts Him for Hosting During Strike

“It sounded like most of the writers were there. We didn’t get a chance to turn away Ken Jennings because no one saw him drive up. So he either heard there was a picket line and didn’t leave home or he went another route into the production,” an anonymous WGA source told the publication.

A fan on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum, who said they attended the tapings, also claimed that Jennings was hosting the new episodes. “Yes he was [there],” the fan wrote in response to another user who asked if Jennings was at the tapings. “And at the end of the taping, Ken told everyone his son Dylan was in the audience!”

Jennings has yet to comment publicly on his decision to keep hosting other than resharing a statement from Sony Pictures about how Trebek continued hosting during the 2008 strikes.

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