Former ‘Jeopardy’ Champ Amy Schneider Delves Into The “Intense” Online Fan Debate Over Which Host Is Better: Ken Jennings Or Mayim Bialik?

For Jeopardy! fans, the debate surrounding whether Ken Jennings or Mayim Bialik is the preferred successor to the late, great Alex Trebek is no trivial matter. And viewers have been certainly vocal about their opinions. But what about what the contestants think?

In an interview with TV Insider, Amy Schneider — the 2022 Tournament of Champions victor, second all-time Jeopardy! winner, and first openly trans contestant to qualify for the Tournament of Champions — had the opportunity to voice her thoughts on the “intense” online debate, which she noted she doesn’t “get involved in, particularly.”

“I only had Ken as a host, so to some extent, I can’t judge exactly, but I loved Ken as a host,” she explained. “I think that it’s so comforting as a contestant to know that he has been where you are, and I think he has a real feel for the flow of the game.”

She also said that she’s been “impressed” by Jennings, highlighting that “hosting is a lot harder of a job than it looks.”

“It’s all edited together to make it look like they never stumble over any clues or get anything wrong, but it’s really hard,” she added. “They’re long days, and the host has to maintain that same level of interest and enthusiasm and energy, even if they’ve been working for 12 hours and everything’s going wrong and they’re exhausted.”

Nonetheless, series EP Michael Davies told Vulture in May that when it came to ratings, which he deemed “one of the biggest things” in terms of measuring feedback, “there’s zero difference” between when Jennings is hosting and when Bialik is hosting.

“It’s exactly the same and that’s the broadest part of the audience,” he continued.

He also acknowledged the two hosts’ strengths.

“Mayim is a very experienced actress,” he said. “Ken is a very experienced Jeopardy! player. They’re both at the beginning of their hosting careers.”

As for Schneider, whose new memoir In The Form of a Question: The Joys and Rewards of a Curious Life was released today, she also told TV Insider that although she “think[s] Ken should be the host because [she] think he’s great,” she would ultimately “take the call” if they reached out and asked her to help host.

“It is a hard job, but I love Jeopardy! and I love all the people that work on it,” she shared. “I had a great experience with all of them. They’d be great people to work with. Yeah, I would certainly listen.”

Jeopardy! airs weeknights at 7/6c. Check out the website for local listings.