Longtime fans of Jeopardy! threaten to boycott the show as Mayim Bialik and Ken Jennings share hosting duties.
On Wednesday, the popular game show announced the two interim hosts would keep their jobs, with Jennings hosting from September through January and Bialik taking over from January through the end of the season.
The ‘Call Me Kat’ actress will also be the host of ‘Celebrity Jeopardy!’ and special tournaments, while Jennings will host the Second Chance Tournament and the Tournament of Champions.
That was unwelcome news for some viewers, as both the storied Jeopardy! champion and the Big Bang Theory alum have dealt with their fair share of mistakes — and with them, criticism.
The Twitter announcement received hundreds of replies, many expressing dissatisfaction at the news that Bialik would be staying close.
Mayim Bialik, 46, has been criticized for believing right answers are wrong. ABC
“I won’t be seeing @Jeopardy until @KenJennings becomes the primary and sole host. This shifter sucks! #boycottjeopardy because they have jerks running it. What a mess,” one commenter said.
“Big! I’ll be watching until December when Ken hosts. I won’t be watching Jeopardy Mayim hosts,” one person said weighed in.
“And I’m not watching all the time,” another person explained.
Bialik will continue to direct her Fox sitcom, Call Me Kat. ABC
“Nobody’s thrilled to even see Mayim as a co-host judging by the folks most of us prefer Ken as a full-time host over Mayim Bialik. Watch viewership drop when Mayim hosts and then step up with Ken, you’ll regret co-hosting crap,” another user wrote.
“This woman is driving me off the show – and most others I know agree that she is a mess to host,” said one viewer joked.
However, others said that Jennings is the problem.
“Mayim is way better than hosting,” one user wrote. “Ken is not a public speaker, let alone a TV host. Trivia nerds and Twitter nerds are the only Jeopardy viewers who prefer Ken, which accounts for a small fraction of Jeopardy viewers.”
Jennings will host from September through January, while Bialik will take over from January through the end of the season. ABC
“If Ken was as good as social media says he would have been Sony’s choice alone,” another specified. “Mayim needs practice. I agree. But she has a far superior Jeopardy voice for reading clues like Alex did. That’s why they chose Mayim.”
“This is a successful hosting team that Alex [Trebek] would be so proud of. Jeopardy is more popular than ever and will have the best future including prime time,” another said of the late longtime host.
Ken Jennings won 74 games of Jeopardy! in 2004. ABC
In other “Jopardy!” Scandalous news, social media stunned last week when all three contestants missed a question about 11-time Grammy winner Taylor Swift and her hit song “You Need to Calm Down.”
Filming for the show’s 39th season begins next week.