Mike Richards Is Out as Executive Producer of 'Jeopardy!' & 'Wheel of Fortune' Amid Scandal

Mike Richards will no longer serve as executive producer of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.

The 46-year-old producer, who was briefly named host of Jeopardy! before stepping away, will now also be leaving the production entirely amid controversy, Sony Pictures Television told staff on Tuesday (August 30), via Deadline.

Suzanne Prete, Business and Strategy exec for Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!, sent an internal note to staff on these shows saying he was leaving, with Embassy Row’s Michael Davies stepping in on an interim basis.

Deadline also reported that “all that has transpired over the last few weeks, it was clear that Richards’ position as EP has been too compromised for him to effectively continue in that role.”

The producer of the show faced much backlash and controversy weeks ago once being named host, after new details surfaced regarding his past conduct and statements on an old podcast series. He then stepped down as host.

The Anti-Defamation League called for an investigation after a report surfaced that he made disparaging remarks about Jews, women and other groups in episodes of The Randumb Show in 2013 and 2014.

At the same time, find out who Sony Pictures named as host of the show’s primetime specials and a spinoff series.