When the search was on a few years ago for a new permanent host for Jeopardy, LeVar Burton was a name enthusiastically supported by fans. The actor is well-respected not only as a performer but for his valuing of education, as demonstrated through his years making Reading Rainbow, and he seemed like a perfect fit for the job. Ultimately, of course, the job went to former champion Ken Jennings, but there is definitely no ill will about it, as Burton now has his own game show to leave a stamp on with Trivial Pursuit.
He recently spoke about his latest small screen adventure during an appearance on the Dropping Names with Brent and Jonny podcast. Much of the conversation concerned his shared Star Trek: The Next Generation history with hosts Brent Spiner and Jonathan Frakes, but his current job making The CW show came up, and he explained how making Trivial Pursuit became a great opportunity in the wake of all the conversation surrounding Jeopardy. Said Burton,
I believe that my whole desire around Jeopardy was in fact to get me to the point where Trivial Pursuit came to me and said, ‘We're turning this IP into a game show, and we don't want anybody else to be our host but you.’ And what Trivial Pursuit has given me that Jeopardy never could have done is my own game show. Alex Trebek really put his imprint on that show, and everybody knows and feels what that is like.
While it's true that The CW's Trivial Pursuit is not technically the first time the classic board game has been made into a game show, it can most definitely be said that Alex Trebek made a significantly bigger pop culture impact on Jeopardy than Wink Martindale did while hosting two seasons of the original Trivial Pursuit series in the early 1990s.
Simply put, one job meant stepping into some huge shoes, and the other gave him a chance to customize his own. He continued,
Following in that imprint… I never would have been able to do that comfortably. This is my own show and I get to invent it and have had the opportunity to invent this show in my own way.
At the end of the day, LeVar Burton did make his own impact on Jeopardy history, having hosted the show from July 26 to 30, 2021 – and in the big picture, it seems like that’s plenty for the actor/host now that he has his exciting new gig.
The new iteration of Trivial Pursuit premiered in October 2024, and it was renewed last spring for a second season – which is airing now on The CW, having launched last month on the 2026 TV premiere schedule. New episodes premiere every Thursday at 9:00pm ET/PT.
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