‘Jeopardy!’: When Will Show Return to Normal After Writers’ Strike?
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It’s great news for Jeopardy! fans as the Writers Guild of America has reached a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to bring an end to the strike.
Should the WGA board vote in favor of the new deal, this means that Jeopardy! will soon return to new episodes with new contestants. But how soon exactly, and what does it mean for hosts Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik?
The long-running game show is currently airing tournaments featuring old contestants and recycled clues. The last time Jeopardy! aired a regular episode was the Season 39 finale on July 28, 2023. In that episode, school counselor Lucas Partridge won his third consecutive game, but he’s had to watch from the sidelines ever since due to the strikes.
But the question now is, when can fans expect normal Jeopardy! to return? Even if the WGA board votes in favor of the new deal, several returning player tournaments are now standing in the way of the regular show.
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A Second Chance tournament featuring Season 37 contestants is currently airing, and this is set to be followed by a Champions Wildcard tournament (featuring the Second Chance winner and Season 38 contestants) airing from October through to mid-December.
Then there is the question of the 2023 Tournament of Champions, which was postponed after several Season 39 champions refused to participate until the strike was resolved. The TOC would usually air before the start of the new season.
According to On-Camera-Audiences.com, the next taping date for Jeopardy! is Wednesday, October 11, so that would be the earliest the show could start using new clues, albeit with “second chance” contestants already involved in tournament play. Those episodes would likely air in December in the final rounds of the Champions Wildcard tournament.
Some fans are so desperate for a return to regular Jeopardy! that have suggested scrapping the Wildcard tournament when the strike is officially over and just moving on to a “normal” Season 40 with new contestants.
“I think the quicker that the show can get on with the S39 postseason and then episodes with new contestants, the better for the show and its viewers,” wrote one fan on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum.
However, others disagreed, with one commenter saying, “It would be so, so awful of them to offer people a second chance at what they believed to be a once in a lifetime experience and then take that away from them.”
Another fan wrote, “I just want to see new shows with new players. Is that even going to happen this season?”
And that is the big question: when exactly could we see new players on Jeopardy? If the Champions Wildcard goes ahead, viewers will unlikely see new contestants this year. However, there are multiple tapings scheduled through November, so new episodes could at least begin filming before the year closes out.
Realistically, we’re probably looking at February 2024 at the earliest for the start of Season 40 and the return of reigning champion Lucas Partridge.
Then there is also the question of Mayim Bialik, who stepped away from the show back in May in solidarity with the WGA strike. Ken Jennings is currently hosting the tournaments and the upcoming second season of Celebrity Jeopardy!
For Season 39, Bialik took over from Jennings in February, which could theoretically happen again this coming February if the ongoing actors’ strike also ends soon.
Either way, fans are excited about the possibility of new episodes with new players and questions.
“This is welcome news,” wrote one fan on Reddit. “Hopefully the language of the agreement is quickly accepted by both sides and people can get back to work as quickly as possible.”
“And there was much rejoicing,” said another.
“Hooray! It’s about time for the strike to end, so the Jeopardy writers get back to work in a week,” added another.
“Just screamed aloud with joy,” said another fan.
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