Jeopardy! fans have been on an emotional whirlwind over the past few years, after the news that longtime host Alex Trebek was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. In the time that followed, Trebek’s health has fluctuated, but he has been steadfast in wanting to continue hosting the show for as long as he possibly can. Whenever the time comes for Trebek to officially step down from his post, it sounds like he wants a certain pop culture icon to take his place. Trebek recently told Good Morning America that he thinks Betty White would be a great replacement for his Jeopardy! role.
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“I joke with the audience all the time and I say, ‘Betty White,’ because they want somebody younger, somebody funnier,” Trebek, who turns 80 this month, explained.
This is far from the first time that Trebek has suggested White as his successor, previously joking that she has a lot of the qualities he would want in a potential replacement.
“When people ask me who I’d like to see replace me, I say, ‘Well, it’s probably going to be a woman, and she’ll have to be bright, she’ll have to have a good sense of humor…’” Trebek explained in an interview earlier this year. “Uhhhh, let’s see…. Betty White! Betty White is my choice.”
That being said, it sounds like Trebek might not have a definitive say in who his replacement ends up being.
“It’s not a decision that would be up to me. And I would not make myself available to presenting an opinion,” Trebek explained earlier this year. “I would leave it up to the people in charge.”
“[Alex] really has no interest in being involved in that process,” Jeopardy! executive producer Harry Friedman later explained. “We would welcome his opinion, obviously, but he feels like it’s really not up to him. And he has said that for a long time.”
Either way, it’s hard to deny that Trebek’s final bow on the show – after it is able to resume production due to the COVID-19 pandemic, of course – will be an emotional one.
“It’ll be a significant moment for me,” Trebek explained in an interview last year. “But I’ve kind of, in my mind, rehearsed it already, and what I would do on that day is tell the director, ‘Time the showdown to leave me 30 seconds at the end. That’s all I want.’ And I will say my goodbyes and I will tell people, ‘Don’t ask me who’s going to replace me because I have no say whatsoever. But I’m sure that if you give them the same love and attention and respect that you have shown me…then they will be a success and the show will continue being a success. And until we meet again, God bless you and goodbye.’”
Would you want to see Betty White take over for Alex Trebek on Jeopardy!? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
