LeVar Burton Is No Longer Interested In Hosting ‘Jeopardy’: It Wasn’t The Thing I Wanted After All

LeVar Burton Is No Longer Interested In Hosting ‘Jeopardy’: It Wasn’t The Thing I Wanted After All

The ride to ‘Jeopardy‘ has ended for LeVar Burton.

Actor, host, and producer, LeVar Burton, 64, best known for hosting Reading Rainbow on PBS, is retiring his request to host the hit game show, Jeopardy.

In a recent interview, Burton expressed that he was no longer interested in the role because it was not what he wanted after all. He says,

“The crazy thing is that when you set your sights on something, they say be careful of what you wish for, because what I found out is that it wasn’t the thing that I wanted after all. What I wanted was to compete. I mean, I wanted the job, right, but then, when I didn’t get it, it was, like ‘Well, okay, what’s next?’”

Burton added,

“The opportunities that have come my way as a result of not getting that gig, I couldn’t have dreamt it up. If you had given me a pen and paper and said, ‘Well, so what do you want this to really look like?’ If it doesn’t include ‘Jeopardy,’ I wouldn’t have been this generous to myself.”

Burton, who hosted the show from July 26-30, became a fan favorite after campaigning for the position on social media. On initially wanting the role Burton said,

“I made it public that I wanted it for myself, that it made sense to me, and they were all about it. It made as much sense to them as it did to me. And, so, they wanted it for me as much as I wanted it.”

The show went on to permanently select former Executive Producer Mike Richards over Burton as the host. However, he was eventually let go for the sexist comments, “Booth Ho,” “Boothistute,” and “Boothslut” of his executive assistant Beth Triffon.

Mike Richards, Levar Burton

Burton starred as a guest host from July 26-30, 2021. Although Jeopardy is no longer in his future, the former Star Trek actor says there is another TV opportunity in the future it just has to be the right one for him.

Jeopardy has been rotating through hosts since the passing of Alex Trebek, who has been hosting the show since 1984.

What would you like to see LeVar Burton do next? Tell us in the comments. 

VIA