LOS ANGELES — Editor's Note: The video above is from March 4, 2020.
"Jeopardy!" is returning for its 37th season, with greater social distance between Alex Trebek and the contestants, and a new role for all-time great contestant Ken Jennings.
A redesigned set for the coronavirus era will allow for the contestants to be further apart and at a greater distance from Trebek, who has continued as host after a diagnosis last year of pancreatic cancer.
“I feel good, and I feel excited because once again 'Jeopardy!' has demonstrated that it’s at the forefront of television programming,” Trebek said in a statement. “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 said last month that he’s responding exceptionally well to treatment and expects to mark his two-year survival next February.
The casting of contestants was done entirely online for this season, which was shot without a studio audience.
Jennings, the record-setting contestant who won on 74 straight shows and took last year's “Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time" title, is joining the series as a consulting producer.
He'll appear on-air with his own video categories, develop projects and act as a public ambassador for the show.
“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.”
The 37th season of the show is expected to air Monday, September 14.
