Ryan Seacrest will be the new host of “Wheel of Fortune” when the show’s longtime host, Pat Sajak, retires.
After months of rumors surrounding who would helm the popular TV game show after Sajak’s retirement, Seacrest and the show announced on Twitter that Seacrest would be taking over.
“I’m truly humbled to be stepping into the footsteps of the legendary Pat Sajak,” Seacrest said. “I can say, along with the rest of America, that it’s been a privilege and pure joy to watch Pat and Vanna on our television screens for an unprecedented 40 years, making us smile every night and feel right at home with them.”
“Wheel” is the latest hosting gig for Seacrest, perhaps best known for his work on “American Idol” and “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.”
“Wheel of Fortune” personality Vanna White hasn’t publicly commented on Seacrest’s new role but celebrated Sajak’s run on the show shortly after his recent retirement announcement.
Sajak, 76, has presided over the game show, in which contestants guess consonants and buy vowels as they try to complete words and phrases in pursuit of money and prizes, since 1981. He took over hosting duties from Chuck Woolery, who was the show’s host when it debuted in 1975. The show started out as a daytime game show but became a syndicated, typically nightly, telecast in 1983, making Sajak and White the faces of “Wheel of Fortune” for four decades.
Seacrest’s pay package hasn’t been announced, and Sajak’s recent earnings as the show’s host aren’t known, but Forbes reported that Sajak was earning $15 million a season as of 2016. According to recent reports by Puck and Entertainment Weekly, White makes roughly $3 million a year, excluding bonuses, and reportedly hasn’t had a salary increase in 18 years.
Seacrest has made as much as $15 million per season as “American Idol” host and $10 million a year as a co-host on “Live With Kelly and Ryan,” a show on which Seacrest appeared for six years until he stepped away from it earlier this year.
“I can’t wait to continue the tradition of spinning the wheel and working alongside the great Vanna White,” Seacrest’s statement said.
The 41st season of “Wheel of Fortune,” Sajak’s final season, will begin in September.
