‘Jeopardy’: Could this decade-old lawsuit stop Mike Richards’s host dreams?
The search remains ongoing to find the next permanent Jeopardy host following the tragic death of Alex Trebek. Currently, there have been many guest hosts cycling through the show in the search to find that perfect one. On Wednesday, a potential contender emerged to fill the host shoes: Mike Richards. Reports stated that he had negotiations to fill the hosting gig.
But is that a good idea? Well, in a process that’s becoming increasingly familiar, social media have dug up a pattern of questionable behavior from the potential host. Enough that, well, it could kill any dreams to have him step in Trebek’s impressive shoes on the set of Jeopardy. What acts in his past could lead the host dreams dashed? Here’s everything you need to know about the old lawsuits.
Old lawsuits?
Mike Richards is a game show vet, who is already a producer on Jeopardy. In addition, he’s worked on Wheel of Fortune and The Price is Right, his time on the latter show is when these lawsuits come into play. During the ten-year run working on the show, a model, Brandi Cochran, became pregnant, had a difficult pregnancy, and was fired, as she said in the 2010 lawsuit.
In 2011, another model Lanisha Cole also filed against Richards and The Price is Right. According to Variety, Cole said that she was “wrongfully terminated and subject to harassment on the set of the long-running game show.” Richards was dismissed as a plaintiff in the case back in 2013. Cole settled with the show out of court. Cochran’s suit went forward where a jury awarded her $8 million in damages.
The verdict was overturned on appeal in 2014, but Cochran was able to settle with the show for an undisclosed amount. Details from both lawsuits, however, have not painted the best picture of the potential permanent Jeopardy host. Fans of the series are definitely not thrilled about Mike Richards’ alleged behavior on the set of The Price is Right.
What did Mike Richards allegedly do?
According to court filings in Cochran’s case, Richards was allegedly callous over her pregnancy and expressed disappointment over her having twins. This led to her not being brought back to the show in 2010. Richards said that the show made changes to the line-up of models who interacted with host Drew Carey, and they decided to go in a different direction.
Court filings, however, also said that Richards said of Cochran back in 2008, “Go figure, I fire five models, what are the odds one of the ones that I keep gets pregnant.” Wow, dude. While the lawsuits generated a fair amount of attention back when they were ongoing, they were not known to fans of Jeopardy during Richards’ run as a guest host back in late February and early March of this year.
Right now, it’s unknown if the resurfacing of these allegations will affect Richards’ chance in landing the plum job. But like many things, fans are not going to take his appointment to the permanent host of the beloved show lying down, especially with these skeletons in the closet. After all, people have been fired from series for less. With the aftermath of Ellen, it would probably be better to have someone without controversy. With that in mind, we’ll have to see where Jeopardy ultimately goes in replacing Trebek.
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What do you think of Mike Richards landing the potential permanent hosting gig on Jeopardy? Do you think other guest hosts on the show would be a better fit? Who would you like to see land the coveted Jeopardy host job? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below!
