New episodes of Jeopardy! will still be hosted by Mike Richards.
Richards may have stepped down as the new host of the classic game show, however, ET has learned that five episodes of Jeopardy! were taped on Thursday with Richards as host. Those new episodes will air as scheduled.
News of Richards no longer hosting Jeopardy! broke Friday morning. He made the announcement in an internal note to staff, revealing that production would be canceled for the day. The news came after he received backlash for sexist comments he made in the past, and for taking on the hosting gig when he's already executive producer of the show.
"Dear Team, it pains me that these past incidents and comments have cast such a shadow on Jeopardy! as we look to start a new chapter. As I mentioned last week, I was deeply honored to be asked to host the syndicated show and was thrilled by the opportunity to expand my role," his message read in part. "However, 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. As such, I will be stepping down as host effective immediately. As a result, we will be canceling production today."
Richards, who was announced as the new permanent host earlier this month, also mentioned in his note that the company would "resume the search for a permanent syndicated host. In the meantime, we will be bringing back guest hosts to continue production for the new season."
Additionally, a spokesperson for Sony Pictures Television also released the following statement to ET:"We support Mike’s decision to step down as host. We were surprised this week to learn of Mike’s 2013/2014 podcast and the offensive language he used in the past. We have spoken with him about our concerns and our expectations moving forward."
"Mike has been with us for the last two years and has led the Jeopardy! team through the most challenging time the show has ever experienced [following Alex Trebek's death]. It is our hope that as EP he will continue to do so with professionalism and respect," the statement concluded.
Prior to stepping down as host, Richards issued a statement saying he was "deeply sorry" for past controversial comments he made that were resurfaced by The Ringer. The outlet reported on his past controversies, including the podcast he started in 2013 called The Randumb Show, in which he made multiple questionable comments about women's bodies.
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