Recently, TV viewers have been getting a double dose of Mayim Bialik as a part-time Jeopardy! host and as the star of Fox’s Call Me Kat. Fans have been supporting the Big Bang Theory vet as she headlines two shows, which seems like it would be taxing for most. But things appear to be working in Bialik’s favor at the moment. While her well-being is always at the forefront, there's also the question of how her sitcom's home network feels about her doing both series at the same time?
The network hasn’t said much about the Call Me Kat star headlining the sitcom and Jeopardy! for the rest of Season 38. That is, until now. Fox Entertainment President Michael Thorn spoke with THR about Mayim Bialik hosting the iconic game show while working in the sitcom realm, and the exec provided some enthusiastic thoughts:
We really believe in Call Me Kat, and Mayim is fantastic both in front of and behind the camera. It’s no surprise she’s also doing exceptional work on Jeopardy!. We’ve really tried to support her while she’s doing Kat. As long as we can keep doing Call Me Kat at the level we’re doing it, we’re happy to support Mayim and our other talent trying to do other creative endeavors that lean into their ambitions. And the truth is, Mayim being on Jeopardy! isn’t the worst thing for Call Me Kat. It’s a good thing to have her out there in front of an audience that maybe hasn’t watched Kat yet but might now because they love her on Jeopardy!. We’re very supportive of it. We’ve really tried to work with her and her team and Sony [which produces Jeopardy!] to try and make it work. As long as we can protect Kat, we’re very happy to support her and feel like they’re beneficial to each other.
So it seems Fox will be supportive of the star's simultaneous hosting and acting duties as long as the broadcaster and Sony continue to make the schedule work. It's cool to see that both of the entertainment entities are ensuring that their star gets to do the work she's passionate about. And should that continue, the studio behind Jeopardy! may pursue her as a permanent host of the iconic game show.
As Michael Thorn pointed out, Mayim Bialik's hosting duties also equate to a win for Call Me Kat, as the game show’s popularity can translate to more eyeballs for the sitcom. There's truth to this, especially since Bialik already has the approval of the game show's fans and contestants, including record-breaking champ Amy Schneider. It's also worth mentioning that Season 2 of Kat kicked off with some strong ratings.
You can't help but love the success the actress is experiencing. As time goes on, she's also sure to be become even more skilled at dealing with the trickiness that comes with hosting the long-running game show and headlining a scripted series. Viewers can catch Mayim Bialik on Jeopardy! weekly in syndication. They can also marvel at Kat and all of her awkwardness when Call Me Kat returns on Feb. 3 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox. You can see what else is coming up for the spring season by checking out CinemaBlend's 2022 TV schedule.
