Breaking it down…
Mayim Bialik is opening up about what happened behind the scenes during the great Jeopardy! host debacle. As you may recall, after a round of high-profile auditions in which celebs and former champs guest hosted, she was named as the sort of second-place finisher to then executive producer Mike Richards.
Back in August, it was announced that Richards would host the main syndicated series while The Big Bang Theory actress would host occasional primetime specials.
But almost immediately after that decision was made, the EP was caught in a MAJOR controversy, including discrimination claims and other issues from his time on The Price Is Right, leading him to step down.
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So, with one of the most inside perspectives into the scandal, what does Mayim have to say? Well, she claims she doesn’t know much — but she’s also pretty boldly admitting her own position in all this.
In a Newsweek tell-all essay hilariously titled I’d Give Up My First Child To Host Jeopardy! Forever, she says she knew as little as we did — maybe less:
“I didn’t immediately know who the other host was going to be, and after Mike Richards was announced as permanent host, a couple more weeks passed and then everything changed and Mike stepped down.”
The 45-year-old, who is mom to Miles, 15, and Frederick, 13, also admits she doesn’t pay much attention to what’s happening around her, adding:
“I think everyone who works with me will say that, as a person who has been acting since I was a kid, I go where I’m pointed and I do the job I’m told to do. I do what’s in front of me. I don’t really follow the news aspect of my industry too much.”
Um, that doesn’t seem that smart or that believable in this situation. It was hard NOT to know what was being talked about in regards to Jeopardy! — and for someone who is clearly desperate to get the full-time gig now (even willing to give up her child??), we’d think she would have paid close attention to the drama.
However, she claims to have been kept in the dark largely by Richards himself — who was of course EP, and therefore her boss, at the same time he was in the running for the job himself:
“That’s how I approached what was going on. Of course I was in touch with Mike as he was my boss at that time, and I don’t wish ill on him, or anyone. But the complexity of these situations is not something that can be summed up easily. My first response, when all of this went down, was to say to the Jeopardy! team: ‘How can I help?’ Because I am part of this family.”
Total team player here! It’s even on the record! Man, she isn’t kidding about wanting this job!
The Blossom alum is currently set to host the trivia show until November 5, at which point Ken Jennings will take over until the end of the year. After that, who knows?
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On her competition, she added:
“I got to take over hosting duties in the middle of Matt Amodio’s run. He’s so on the ball and so well-rounded and easy-going, and I just marvel at that. So far, Ken Jennings–who I am sharing hosting duties with for the rest of 2021–and I have only had the chance to interact once at a press conference, he is much taller than I thought he would be! I look forward to the opportunity to talk to him more. I’ll certainly take any pointers he’s got!”
Hmm… What are YOUR thoughts on this, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments (below)!
The post Mayim Bialik Breaks Silence On Mike Richards <i>Jeopardy!</i> Scandal appeared first on Perez Hilton.