COLIN Jost was chosen to play on Jeopardy! as the official host of the new pop culture spinoff on Amazon Prime.
The Saturday Night Live star will host the first version of the iconic quiz show exclusively on streaming.
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Colin has been announced as host of Pop Culture Jeopardy!, Deadline confirmed on Wednesday.
The series has been in the works for some time. It was announced in May and will begin production in August.
Jost, currently in Tahiti covering the Olympics for NBC, will direct the tournament-style series, which is separate from the syndicated nightly Jeopardy!
He gave a simple statement about the news: “What it is: I’m excited.”
Ken Jennings is the sole host of the main franchise following the firing of Mayim Bialik last December.
The spinoff does not yet have a release date, but is expected to premiere in early fall.
FANS REACT TO DANGER! JOST
Fans were divided over the news and many were disappointed that the game show didn’t cast someone more diverse.
“My thoughts: okay, sure, whatever. Bowen Yang wasn’t available?” a user X wrote.
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“So much for Mayim…” wrote another.
A third person wrote on Reddit: “Might as well take a loaf of Wonder Bread and put it behind a podium.”
“Ugh, not a fan. I hope he at least stays out of the way of the game,” wrote a fourth.
“I was hoping for Buzzy, but Jost should be interesting!” wrote a fifth.
“Was hoping for Katie Nolan but Colin will be fine,” wrote a sixth.
‘WE ARE EXCITED’
The announcement came with a statement from Sony Pictures Television – the spinoff is executive produced by the showrunner of Jeopardy! Michael Davies.
“Colin’s sharp wit and intelligence epitomizes Pop Culture Jeopardy!,” said Suzanne Prete, president of game shows at Sony.
“He is smart and fast, like our competitors, and we know he will be able to keep up with them as he makes this new series his own. We couldn’t be happier to have him join us on this new journey.”
“We are thrilled to welcome the multi-talented Colin Jost as host of Pop Culture Jeopardy!,” added Lauren Anderson, head of brand and content innovation at Amazon MGM Studios.
“Colin’s wry affability and pop culture fluency make him uniquely qualified as the perfect host for this new iteration of the beloved franchise.”
WHAT IS IT: DANGER OF POP CULTURE?
Amazon Prime Video brought a new take on Jeopardy! which will be broadcast exclusively on the platform.
The spinoff will be called Pop Culture Jeopardy! and will feature three major changes to the format.
Instead of answering general knowledge questions like players on the standard edition of the game show, contestants will answer questions about pop culture topics like music, movies, sports, TV and more.
Additionally, the show will only be broadcast instead of broadcast on TV like the late night show.
Finally, there will not be three individual contestants competing against each other. Instead, there will be three teams of three facing each other.
Jeopardy.com describes it this way: “Contestants, playing in teams of three, will need to be experts in categories from Alternative Rock to The Avengers, Broadway to MMA, Gen Z to Zendaya.
“They compete in a tournament-style event for the grand prize and bragging rights.”
But the initial announcement never mentioned Ken or Mayim, leaving one question unanswered: who would host?
The US Sun previously reported that Katie Nolan of Celebrity Jeopardy! hinted that she was in talks for the role, which fans largely supported.
Other names fans brought up included former champions Buzzy Cohen and Sam Buttrey, two of viewers’ favorites.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
