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Ken Jennings is breaking his silence on Mayim Bialik’s departure from Jeopardy!
Jennings and Bialik had split hosting duties on the gameshow until Bialik took a hiatus from the show in support of the Writers Guild of America strike back in May.
She never returned.
Bialik has since announced that she was let go by the show’s producers after Jennings continued to excel as the lone host and made it clear that there was no longer a need to have two hosts.
Now, Jennings is opening up about Bialik’s departure and how it caught him off guard.
“It took me off guard, because I loved working with my Mayim and I’m gonna miss her,” Jennings told The Hollywood Reporter. “I can’t speak to her decision-making process or her opinions about it.
“But on my end, I’m just a fan of Jeopardy! and I’m always delighted to host when they call upon me. I just feel extremely lucky to have even been considered for this job as a non-broadcaster. It’s kind of a weird thing to try to bring back an ex-contestant to host, and I’ve obviously been learning as I go.”
As a contestant, Jennings won over $4.5 million while winning 74 consecutive games — the longest winning streak in Jeopardy! history.
