Christopher Willard/ABC/ Getty Photographs
Jeopardy! is present process a giant change for its Season 40 on account of the writers strike.
Michael Davies, who took over as exec producer and showrunner on a everlasting foundation final yr, admitted that plenty of his plans for Season 40 and the post-season episodes have been “derailed” and that the present is now in a “holding sample”.
Talking on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast, he stated that he admires and misses the writers, who’re “beloved and valued members of the Jeopardy! staff” however the industrial motion has result in a “modified” Season 40.
Primarily, it is going to deliver again earlier contestants for Season 40 and can use a mix of questions written by the writers earlier than the strike in addition to recycled materials.
“I consider, principally, that it could not be honest to have new contestants making their first look on the Alex Trebek stage, doing it with non-original materials or… a mix of non-original materials and materials that was written pre-strike. So we determined that basically we would have liked to ask again and provides a second probability on the whole to gamers who most likely thought that their probability to return again and play on the Alex Trebek stage had gone perpetually. We’re going to open the season with a second probability match for gamers from Season 37 who misplaced their preliminary sport, and winners from that can advance to a Season 37 and Season 38 Champions Wild Card.”
This comes after plans to increase the post-season had been scrapped as a result of strike. He revealed there have been plans to kick off all the season of Jeopardy! with post-season episodes, a champions wild card match main right into a Match of Champions earlier than going into common episodes.
“I perceive that one of the best episodes which can be attainable are episodes that characteristic our writers writing authentic materials and the perfect contestants that we placed on the air enjoying that authentic materials,” he added.
He admitted that he had “no concept on timing” as to when it will likely be in a position to return to common episodes with new contestants.
Elsewhere, he stated that the second and third place prize pots are being elevated by $1,000, which means that second place will get $3,000 and third place getting $2,000. “We perceive that post-Covid journey, plans have elevated and the way sophisticated funding a visit to Jeopardy! is for a lot of contestants inside our neighborhood and we predict that is means about time,” he stated.
Nonetheless, no phrase on hosts when the present returns in September. Deadline revealed in Could that Mayim Bialik, who swaps internet hosting dates with Ken Jennings, determined in opposition to internet hosting the ultimate episodes of Season 40 on account of the writers strike.
