Mike Richards, the show’s executive producer, became embroiled in controversy after it was revealed he previously made insensitive remarks about women, Jews and homeless people, among others, during a podcast he once hosted.
Mike Richards has stepped down as the new “Jeopardy!” host, just nine days after he was tapped as the surprise replacement for the beloved Alex Trebek, who died of pancreatic cancer last November.
“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,” Richards wrote in a memo announcing the decision to staff. “I will be stepping down as host effective immediately. As a result, we will be canceling production today.”
Richards, the show’s executive producer, became embroiled in controversy after it was revealed he previously made insensitive remarks about women, Jews and homeless people, among others, during a podcast he once hosted. Earlier this week, he issued an apology about the comments.
In one clip, Richards had an exchange about nude photos on a coworker’s phone.
The show will now return to rotating guest hosts as it did after Trebek’s death. There was no immediate word about any changes for Mayim Bialik, who was named as host of primetime specials and a “Jeopardy!” spinoff.
Richards will stay on as executive producer.
