LeVar Burton starts his stint as a Jeopardy! guest host on Monday, July 26.
Burton, known for his roles in Roots, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Reading Rainbow, told the show’s producers he was interested in being considered, but a passionate social media campaign led by fans who supported Burton to take over as host garnered over 257,000 signatures. This helped catapult his hosting role.
Burton has been watching the other guest hosts for the Canadian-born Trebek position from 1984 until his November 2020 death from cancer.
Burton will host Jeopardy! from July 26 to 30, followed by David Faber August 2-6, and Joe Buck August 9-13.
Related Story: LeVar Burton Is Next In Line To Guest Host ‘Jeopardy!’
After announcing Burton as a guest host, Jeopardy! executive producer Mike Richards said, “Our goal has been to present a wide variety of guest hosts with different skill sets and backgrounds on our path to finding a permanent host. Our passionate fans are telling us what they like, and we are listening. All of the guest hosts have brought individualism, energy and an authentic love of our show to each of their episodes. We look forward to sharing the rest of the season with our viewers.”
During an interview with The Associated Press, Burton discussed diversity and his advice to continue this job as guest host and potentially permanent host.
Burton said his first recording as guest host was “Really, really, really scary” as he tried to manage the pressure of wanting to live up to Alex’s example and legacy.
He then spoke on how important diversity is in this role, saying, “There’s nothing like ‘Jeopardy!’ in the cultural consciousness. It’s not that I’m trying to put it on the same level, but I liken it to Barack Obama being elected president in the United States in 2008. I personally never thought I would see that happen in my lifetime. Did his election mean that we were in a post-racial America? Obviously not at all. But it was an important step. Every time we reach that milestone of a first, it does say something about us. It also tells us something that we continue to have these moments of firsts…. that white is the normative default. The reason that white is the default is the conversation that we are trying to have in this country now, that there’s so much resistance to.”
Good luck, Burton! We can’t wait to watch you shine in your first episode.
