The 'Jeopardy!' GOAT will be stepping behind the podium following Alex Trebek's death.
Ken Jennings is stepping up to his place behind the podium. Following the death of longtime host Alex Trebek earlier this month, Jeopardy! announced on Monday that the show would resume production with a rotating slate of guest hosts.
"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 shared to the show's social media. "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," the statement continued.
The show further announced that Jennings would serve as the first of the guest hosts when production resumed on Nov. 30.
"Though a long-term replacement host will not be named at this time, Jeopardy! will return to the studio with a series of interim guest hosts from within the Jeopardy! family," the show announced.
They did not yet reveal who may be tapped to serve as a guest host in the future. Jennings, however, is by far the shows most famous former contestant -- setting the record for most consecutive games won with 74 and most money won in regular season earnings, having scored $2,520,700 during his incredible winning streak. He also won the championship title during the Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time primetime special.
Jennings also shared the news to Twitter, and paid tribute to the iconic host, writing, "There will only ever be one Alex Trebek, but I'm honored to be helping Jeopardy! out with this in January."
Meanwhile, the show plans on airing 10 of Trebek's "best episodes" throughout the week of Christmas, and the late host's final three episodes, recorded shortly before his death, will air the week of Jan. 4, 2021. Jennings' new episodes will air beginning Jan. 11.
Trebek died on Nov. 8 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 80.
See the video below for more on the iconic game show host's life and legacy.
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