The next host of Jeopardy! has become a major controversy, and the best outcome would be The Big Bang Theory’s Mayim Bialik sharing the position with LeVar Burton. After Alex Trebek’s tragic passing in November 2020, Jeopardy! held off on immediately choosing a full-time successor by introducing a series of guest hosts for the remainder of the 37th season. In an interview with USA Today, Jeopardy! executive producer Mike Richards said it was important to not rush into choosing a new host because Alex’s replacement would have some big shoes to fill.
Many of Jeopardy!’s interim hosts were well-known figures including media’s Anderson Cooper and Katie Couric, former contestant Ken Jennings, and actors LeVar Burton and Mayim Bialik. While many fans advocated for the latter two guest hosts to be awarded the full-time position, Jeopardy!’s executive producer Mike Richards was controversially appointed due to his higher ratings on his hosting episodes. The decision for Richards, a relatively unknown figure with a shady past that includes problematic podcast comments and sexual harassment lawsuits, to be Jeopardy!’s new host has rightfully been met with intense pushback. On August 20th, Richards announced he would be stepping down as the new host, leaving Jeopardy! to continue the search.
After originally announcing that Mike Richards would be Jeopardy!’s new host, the game show also revealed Mayim Bialik would reoccur as the host for primetime specials and spinoff games. Since Richards stepped down, many have advocated for Bialik to take on the full-time position — but a better resolution would be for Bialik to keep her current role and become a Jeopardy! duo with Reading Rainbow’s beloved LeVar Burton. Multiple generations of viewers have a warm affection for Burton from his timing hosting the children’s educational series Reading Rainbow, as well as his work as Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation. By giving Burton the more prominent role and keeping Bialik as the primetime and specials host, Jeopardy! would have a great hosting tag-team of the compassionate, experienced actor/host Burton with the neuroscientist and The Big Bang Theory actress Bialik.
Burton is also extremely passionate about the game show — he revealed on Twitter that hosting Jeopardy! is “one of [his] dream jobs.” His passion for knowledge-based entertainment, a kind demeanor, positive history with audiences, open schedule, and chance to give the host a voice that doesn’t come from a privileged white male make Burton the perfect choice for Jeopardy!’s main host. Bialik would work as second-in-command since she holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience and is an award-winning actress from a popular sitcom that celebrates trivia and knowledge. TBBT's Mayim Bialik hosting on her own doesn’t seem likely (or smart) when considering the controversy over her problematic comments on vaccinations and shaming Weinstein victims — a quality Jeopardy! doesn’t need in a host after the Richards fiasco. Bialik is still pretty qualified for the hosting job, so keeping her on the back burner may be Jeopardy!’s best option PR-wise.
Before Trebek passed away, he said in an interview for 92nd Street Y that he believed his successor would be “a woman, and she’ll have to be bright. She’ll have to have a good sense of humor.” Coming from the revered host himself, Bialik seems to tick the boxes for what Alex was looking for in his own replacement. At the same time, she likely couldn’t host Jeopardy! on her own anyway considering Bialik leads the sitcom Call Me Kat, which was renewed for a second season. By pairing with Burton, Bialik would be able to keep her role as primetime host while giving the higher platform to a more available actor with no history of controversy. As a dedicated man with universal admiration and much support behind him, Burton should be Jeopardy!'s rightful successor, with the passionate Big Bang Theory's Mayim Bialik at his side.