Richards, 46, has reportedly announced that he is stepping down in a memo released to staff, which has surfaced on social media.The statement read: “I was deeply honoured to be asked to host the syndicated show and was thrilled by the opportunity to expand my role. However, over the last several days it has become clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show.”Sony Pictures Television will now “resume the search for a permanent syndicated host”.The statement concluded: “I want to apologise to each of you for the unwanted negative attention that has come to Jeopardy! over the last few weeks and for the confusion and delays this is now causing. I know I have a lot of work to do to regain your trust and confidence.” Richards was named as the new Jeopardy! host alongside actor Mayim Balik earlier this month following Alex Trebek’s death back in 2020.The quiz show landed himself in hot water over controversial comments he had made about his co-host Beth Triffon during The Randumb Show podcast.The podcast, which ran from 2013 to 2014, gave fans a behind the scenes look at The Price Is Right.According to The Ringer, Beth – who served as his co-host/former assistant – said she worked as a model at the CES during the episode.Mike then mocked Beth as a “booth ho,” “booth s**t,” and “boothstitute.”In another episode, Mike made comments about a photo of Beth and her friends.He called the group “really frumpy and overweight” and claimed “they all look terrible in the picture … they look fat and not good in the picture”.Following the backlash, Mike broke his silence with a statement through Sony.The former TV host said: “It is humbling to confront a terribly embarrassing moment of misjudgment, thoughtlessness, and insensitivity from nearly a decade ago.“Looking back now, there is no excuse, of course, for the comments I made on this podcast and I am deeply sorry.”He added: “The podcast was intended to be a series of irreverent conversations between longtime friends who had a history of joking around.”“Even with the passage of time, it’s more than clear that my attempts to be funny and provocative were not acceptable, and I have removed the episodes.”Earlier this month, rumours began to spread that he had also contributed to “toxic” behaviour on The Price Is Right set.This article originally appeared in The Sun and was republished with permission
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