Mayim Bialik wants Jeopardy! fans to shift their focus back on the contestants of the competition, not think about who is hosting the show.
On Monday, The Big Bang Theory actress walked onto the stage for the first time as Jeopardy!’s new interim host. “Thank you, Johnny Gilbert,” she said. “Welcome. I am so honored to be a part of the Jeopardy! family, and there is no place I’d rather be than right here with these amazing contestants.”
Mayim first stood at Jeopardy!’s lectern as one of many celebrity guest hosts this spring and was brought back in August as a primetime specials host alongside newly named Jeopardy! permanent host Mike Richards. But shortly after, Mike stepped down and eventually exited the show after past controversial comments and decade-old lawsuits from his time at The Price Is Right resurfaced online. Now, Mayim is splitting hosting duties with Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings until the end of the year.
Speaking with NBC News, Mayim opened up about the hosting changes and how she feels compelled to bring back some normalcy to the show. “To be honest, there's been a lot unfolding over the last month, much of which the public knows about and a lot of which the public doesn't necessarily need to know about,” she told the outlet. “What I can say is that when Mike [Richards] stepped down as host, what I said was, ‘How can I help?’”
Mayim echoed these words in an interview with Glamour, in which she said that she approached the show first about lending a hand despite her other ongoing projects, including her hit CBS sitcom Call Me Kat and podcast Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown. That said, she and Ken are determined to get the show back on track while discussions about naming a new permanent host are put on the back burner.
“We're kind of in that sort of mode: trying to get some stability and consistency back for our wonderful staff and crew, many of whom have been there for decades without any sort of drama or turmoil. That's what I think Ken and I are both focusing on right now,” she said.
As for how she intends to do this, Mayim explained that she won’t be drawing unnecessary attention to herself. “My interest right now is for the viewers to not think much about what's going in terms of hosting, meaning I'd like to be as much of a neutral to pleasant presence as host,” she said. “I really don't want to make it about me, because it's not ... [I'm] just trying to decrease any drama factor going on and kind of go back to this incredible, iconic show.”
Mayim is set to host new season 38 episodes of Jeopardy! through November 5 and then Ken will take over. At the moment, she’s looking forward to getting to know the Jeopardy! prodigy better and silence the noise around her while she's on the legendary show.
