When will new episodes of Jeopardy! return? The long-running syndicated quiz show has set September 14 as the date for its season 37 premiere, following a lengthy hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I feel good, and I feel excited because once again Jeopardy! has demonstrated that it’s at the forefront of television programming,” host Alex Trebek said in a statement on Thursday. “I believe we are the first quiz show to come back on the air in the COVID-19 era. On a personal level, I’m excited because it gets me out of the house. It gives me something to do on a regular basis, and I was missing that.”
Trebek, who has kept fans and admirers updated on his pancreatic cancer prognosis this summer, won’t be alone on Jeopardy! broadcasts. The new season will also make room for 74-time champion Ken Jennings, who is joining the show as both a consulting producer and on-air presence. According to a press release, Jennings is expected to “present his own special video categories, develop projects, assist with contestant outreach, and serve as a general ambassador for the show.” His first appearance is scheduled for September 15.
“Though I’ve played my last round of Jeopardy! as a contestant, I’m delighted to have the opportunity to remain involved with my favorite show,” Jennings said in a statement. “I’m still in on all the action, but I don’t have to worry about phrasing things in the form of a question anymore.”
Like the rest of the industry, Jeopardy! stopped producing new episodes in March as the severity of the coronavirus pandemic came into greater focus. The show finally ran out of new episodes in June.
In July, Trebek released a memoir, The Answer Is… Reflections on My Life, and embarked on a massive press tour to discuss the book and his current health prognosis. “My doctor has told me that he is counting on me celebrating two years of survivorship past the diagnosis of stage 4 pancreatic cancer. And that two years happens in February,” Trebek told Good Morning America in July. “So I expect to be around, because he said I will be around. And I expect to be hosting the show if I am around.”
In that same interview, Trebek credited Jeopardy! with helping him get through the cancer treatments.
“It’s something that I can’t explain intellectually. At a gut level, without even thinking about it, it just happens. I suddenly wake up and I’m able to perform and handle the show because I like it,” he said. “It’s a good job.”
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