Mike Richards, who was named the new host of “Jeopardy!” last week, is abruptly leaving the role as the beloved game show confronts a roiling controversy over offensive and sexist comments he made on a podcast several years ago.
Mr. Richards, who as the show’s executive producer helped oversee the search for Alex Trebek’s replacement — before he himself was named to the position — said on Friday in a staff memo that the controversy had made “clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show.”
“As such, I will be stepping down as host effective immediately,” Mr. Richards wrote.
But Sony Pictures Entertainment, which produces and distributes the game show, said that Mr. Richards would stay on as the program’s executive producer.
“We support Mike’s decision to step down as host,” Sony said in a…
