Mayim Bialik to Be First ‘Jeopardy!’ Guest Host After Mike Richards’ Exit

Mayim Bialik will be the first guest host for “Jeopardy!” following Mike Richards’ one-day tenure as Alex Trebek’s successor.

Bialik, who was named the host of the game show’s primetime specials and spinoffs, will tape three weeks worth of episodes, Sony Pictures TV said on Monday.

CNN first reported that Bialik was going to host this week, adding that the “Call Me Kat” star is being considered for the permanent role. A rep for Sony declined to comment on if she was being considered.

Richards stepped down as permanent host of the syndicated Sony quiz show on Friday, the day after it returned to production with Richards behind the podium. Richards taped five episodes Thursday, which will all air.

For now, the long-running game show will go back to the guest-host model, which “Jeopardy!” had been using over the past several months to audition potential replacements for the late Alex Trebek, with stints by LeVar Burton, Anderson Cooper and Katie Couric, among others.

Richards, who joined “Jeopardy!” as executive producer in 2019 was named Trebek’s permanent replacement earlier this month. That announcement came just days after Richards was forced to answer for comments cited in a pair of “Price Is Right” lawsuits resurfaced earlier this month.

Last week, The Ringer reported on the existence of “The Randumb Show,” Richards’ 2013 podcast in which he “repeatedly used offensive language and disparaged women’s bodies.” The podcast, recorded during his time as executive producer on “The Price Is Right,” was co-hosted by Richards and his former assistant Beth Triffon and ran for 41 episodes.

According to The Ringer, Richards repeatedly made sexist and objectifying comments toward Triffon and other women. In one instance cited, Richards mocked Triffon for collecting unemployment benefits, asking her, “Do you feel dirty?” In another, he mocked a photo of her and her friends in swimsuits, saying they “look really frumpy and overweight.”

“It has become clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show,” Richards said on Friday.