Jeopardy! Sets Production Restart With Ken Jennings as Interim Host

Jeopardy! will resume production later this month, just weeks after the show's host Alex Trebek died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. 

Ken Jennings, who is widely regarded as the best player of all time, will serve as the first of a series of interim hosts before the beloved series announces a full-time host. 

"Alex believed in the importance of JEOPARDY! and always said that he wanted the show to go on after him," Executive Producer Mike Richards said in a statement.

"We will honor Alex's legacy by continuing to produce the game he loved with smart contestants and challenging clues. By bringing in familiar guest hosts for the foreseeable future, our goal is to create a sense of community and continuity for our viewers."

It's unclear how long Jennings will host the show, but given that there will be more hosts before a full-time host is named, it's likely it will be a one or two week stint. 

"There will only ever be one Alex Trebek, but I'm honored to be helping Jeopardy! out with this in January," Jennings tweeted following the announcement. 

Trebek hosted Jeopardy! for over 35 years before he passed away earlier this month at age 80. 

He made his battle with Stage 4 cancer public in 2019, and made it clear he wanted to remain with the series as long as he could. 

It was previously reported that Trebek's final episode would air on December 25, but a new plan has been announced "due to anticipated preemptions around Christmas and New Year's."

The final episodes have now been pushed to the week of January 4, 2021. Instead of going off the air over Christmas, the series will air 10 of his best episodes over two weeks, beginning December 21. 

Then, the new episodes with guest hosts will arrive on January 11. 

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Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.