LeVar Burton to Host Trivial Pursuit Game Show

Star Trek: The Next Generation actor LeVar Burton will host a new game show version of the classic board game Trivial Pursuit. Variety reports that Burton will host the new game show that is currently in development at Entertainment One, the TV and movie development arm of Hasbro. Hasbro also publishes the Trivial Pursuit board game. No network or streaming platform is currently connected with the series. 

Burton, in addition to a storied career as an actor, was also a popular choice to replace Alex Trebek as the permanent host of Jeopardy! Burton was one of several guest hosts of Jeopardy! over the summer, but dropped out of consideration after Mike Richards was chosen as the next permanent host and then resigned after controversial comments from an old podcast came to light. 

“‘Trivial Pursuit’ is one of the best-known brands in the gaming universe,” Burton said in an official announcement of the game show. “I am thrilled to have partnered with Hasbro and eOne to bring this beloved game to market as a premium show for television.”

Back when Burton announced he would no longer pursue the Jeopardy! hosting job, he did note that he could see himself as a game show host soon.” I never thought about hosting any other game show outside of Jeopardy!” Burton said. But now, they went in a different direction with their show, which is their right, and now I’m thinking, well, it does kind of make sense, let me see what I can do. So we’re trying to figure out what the right game show for LeVar Burton would be.”

Originally launched in 1981, Trivial Pursuit involves players trying to answer questions from six different categories. When they answer a question from a specific category correctly, they receive a pie-shaped game piece that goes into their board piece. When a player has all six category pieces, they return to the center of the board and try to answer a final trivia question from a category chosen by the other players. Dozens of Trivial Pursuit variants have been released over the years, ranging from sports-themed versions to versions for kids and even tougher questions. 

This isn’t the first time Trivial Pursuit has come to TV. The Family Channel aired a version hosted by Wink Martindale from 1993 to 1995. A syndicated version ran from 2008 to 2009 and ESPN aired a sports-themed version for 5 episodes in 2004. A movie detailing the making of Trivial Pursuit featuring the music of Jimmy Buffett also aired back in 1988.