It was a long and messy road to get there, but when Jeopardy! announced that Ken Jennings would be joining Mayim Bialik as the official hosts of the classic quiz show, many people saw it as the Jeopardy! GOAT finally ascending to his rightful place behind the lectern following Alex Trebek’s death in 2020. And while we now know that Jennings and Trebek had spoken about the former contestant stepping in as host — at least temporarily amid Trebek’s battle with pancreatic cancer — a resurfaced Jeopardy! clip seems to prove that the hosting icon had thought about that succession plan years before it was necessary to put one into action.
A Jeopardy! fan happened upon an episode from 2014’s Battle of the Decades, in which Ken Jennings had returned to compete against 44 other former champions. There was inarguably a lot of talent to cross the stage over those five weeks, but Alex Trebek made an interesting comment to Jennings, as this fan pointed out:
I was watching an old game from 2014 and noticed Alex said this…@KenJennings @Jeopardy #jeopardy pic.twitter.com/8zoLJErp3eJuly 20, 2023
Interestingly, Ken Jennings did not go on to win the Battle of the Decades — he came in second to Brad Rutter, who is still the biggest winner in Jeopardy! history — however, he was likely a more familiar face to fans, after becoming game show royalty in 2004, when he won 74 games of the quiz show in a row. His “celebrity” factor may have played into Alex Trebek’s futurecasting, as he and Jennings had the following exchange:
- JENNINGS: I’ve been behind this podium a lot, and I feel really at home here.
- TREBEK: How would you feel over [motions toward the host’s lectern]… No we won’t talk about that.
Ken Jennings revealed his final conversation with Alex Trebek, which occurred just a couple of days before he died. They spoke about Jennings going into the studio to rehearse, with the plan being for the former contestant to fill in for Trebek for a while, with the hopes that the host would be able to regain some strength and return. That never happened.
The former champ was the first person to take over Jeopardy! hosting duties in the aftermath of Alex Trebek’s passing, and he even hosted the episode that fell on the anniversary of the host’s death — a fact the producers kept a secret from Ken Jennings until after filming was complete. Despite many fans wanting Jennings to remain the host — and former champion Arthur Chu pointing out that’s what Trebek had wanted as well — a number of celebrities were brought in for a turn at guest-hosting.
The show then became embroiled in controversy surrounding then-executive producer Mike Richards, who named himself permanent host before discrimination lawsuits and offensive comments he’d made on an old podcast resurfaced. Richards was fired by Sony after just one day of filming as Jeopardy!’s host, and Ken Jennings was called back to share duties with Mayim Bialik.
It’s safe to say that’s not exactly how Alex Trebek envisioned things going down, but especially after seeing that old clip from the Battle of the Decades, it certainly does seem like Jeopardy! has achieved the outcome that the iconic host foresaw nearly a decade ago.
The state of Jeopardy!’s upcoming season is unknown due to the WGA writer’s strike, but you can see Ken Jennings in action as the host of Jeopardy! Masters, which is currently re-airing on ABC at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesdays. All episodes are also available to stream with a Hulu subscription.