The real reason Mayim Bialik walked off Jeopardy
Former The Big Bang Theory Mayim Bialik has walked off the set of Jeopardy! to stand in solidarity with the Writer's Guild of America's strike. The decision makes the game show the first impacted by the strike.
Ken Jennings will replace the 47-year-old for the remainder of her filming schedule for season 39. The two share hosting duties, with 48-year-old Ken hosting the daily Jeopardy! episodes and Mayim fronting Celebrity Jeopardy!, the Jeopardy! National College Championship and other episodes.
The Call Me Kat lead was later seen on the picket line with writers Michele Loud, Jim Rhine and Billy Wisse.
Mayim and Ken have been the regular hosts since 2021 after the show suffered a series of scandals that came only days after the announcement that Mike Richards would be taking over the late Alex Trebek.
He was accused of making offensive comments on his podcast from 2013-2014 and prior discrimination lawsuits emerged.
Alex Trebek, the long-time host of the popular show, died peacefully at home in November 2020 after a 20-month battle with stage IV pancreatic cancer, and the show had a series of guest hosts including Mayim, Ken, Savannah Guthrie and Robin Roberts.
Savannah praised the crew behind the hit TV show after her two-week hosting stint came to an end, acknowledging it was an honor to "be here and work with the people who worked alongside Alex for decades".
"It is evident how loved he is, how much he is missed," she added. "This is a family, and I am so thankful to be here and to share in that legacy for just a moment."
It was alleged that Mayim was a top choice to host the daytime syndicated series but filming for her comedy became a scheduling issue, and show bosses settled on Mike Richards, an unknown face and name who was an executive producer behind the scenes.
Mike released a statement after stepping down, which read: "It pains me that these past incidents and comments have cast such a shadow on Jeopardy! as we look to start a new chapter. Over the last several days it has become clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show. As such, I will be stepping down as host effective immediately."
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