LeVar Burton, Spurned As Potential 'Jeopardy!' Host, To Helm New 'Trivial Pursuit' Game Show

Although LeVar Burton’s efforts to gain the host’s job on the long-running game show “Jeopardy!” came to naught, the actor has been signed to host a game show version of the popular board game “Trivial Pursuit,” which is now in development at Entertainment One (eOne), a subsidiary of Hasbro Inc. HAS.

What Happened: According to a Variety report, Burton will also serve as an executive producer on the series, which is being developed by his LeVar Burton Entertainment company in collaboration with eOne.

Tara Long, president of global unscripted television for eOne and also an executive producer on the new show, stated that Burton’s “love for intellectual curiosity paired with his ability to connect with audiences worldwide make him the perfect partner to bring Hasbro’s beloved trivia game to households in a new and exciting way.”

The new series has yet to be attached to a specific network.

Why It Happened: Burton has been a popular figure on television since his breakthrough role as Kunta Kinte in the 1976 mini-series “Roots,” and he is best known as Commander Geordi La Forge in “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and as the host of the long-running PBS Kids educational series “Reading Rainbow.”

Burton won an episode of “Celebrity Jeopardy!” in 1995, and in September 2020 he responded to talk about longtime host Alex Trebek’s possible retirement by offering himself as a replacement, claiming that he had been "preparing my whole life" for that role.

Burton was among a number of celebrities who guest hosted “Jeopardy!” following Trebek’s death in November 2020, but his first episode on July 26 became notorious when contestant Patrick Pearce wound up with a score of -$7,400, the lowest in the show’s history.

The “Jeopardy!” hosting gig was ultimately divided between the show’s executive producer Mike Richards and actress Mayim Bialik, but Richards withdrew from the job amid when reports of sexual harassment complaints and recordings of offensive comments made against women and minority groups surfaced; Sony Pictures Television SONY later fired him as executive producer.

Ken Jennings, who enjoyed a 74-game winning streak on the game show in 2004 and later became a consulting producer, was named as Richards’ replacement.

Photo: Tweigel59/Wikimedia Commons.