Mike Richards’ stint as host of Jeopardy! is now officially gone, however the show is still airing the episodes he presented. This ongoing awkwardness follows Richards’ resignation following an exhaustive piece by Claire McNear (of The Ringer) detailing Richards’ history of disturbing (often sexist and prejudiced) remarks. Richards is no longer an executive producer, and in the meanwhile, reigning champion Matt Amodio must continue to win despite the annoyance of the annoying-answer issue.
Following his accumulation of at least $574,000 in winnings, Amodio sat down with the Washington Post, which he mostly piled up during the oddest period in the long-running game show’s history. Naturally, Amodio had to explain how he deals with pressure in odd situations, and his response was instructive. He’s not worrying about the hosting issue at all in order to stay focused on winning:
“Frankly, the last thing I’m thinking about when I’m in the middle of a game is who’s hosting. I’ve had people say, ‘Oh man, you’ve moved on to your fourth host, that has to be difficult.’ And I would say, ‘Well, you’re right, but I didn’t even realize that, necessarily.’ Cause I’m trying to pull these really obscure facts out of my brain, and that takes all the mental energy I can afford at the moment.”
In other words, he’s keeping his “game face” on, which is about all anyone can do when competing against outside forces that try to derail them. Amodio has also triumphed, albeit to a lesser extent, in obtaining the blue checkmark he coveted on Twitter. In other words, everything Amodio is coming up, but nothing Mike Richards is coming up. And the hunt for a host must continue.
