Pat Sajak’s reign as one of the best game show hosts is officially over, as the Wheel of Fortune mainstay retired after more than 40 years of leading contestants through the letter-guessing game. Ryan Seacrest is set to take over when new episodes hit the 2024 TV schedule this fall, and when he does, the new host is undoubtedly hoping to draw as many eyeballs as Sajak did in his final episode.
The Season 41 finale of Wheel of Fortune aired June 7 and featured Pat Sajak bidding farewell to his loyal audience and thanking viewers for allowing him into their homes for so many years. According to THR, the episode attracted 11.03 million viewers, which is the highest number the game show has seen since April 29, 2020 — when Americans were locked down due to COVID.
For the week of June 3-9, Pat Sajak’s farewell was the most-watched non-sports program on broadcast or cable TV at any time of day, coming in second only to Game 2 of the NBA Finals, which drew 12.31 million viewers on June 9.
It wasn’t just the farewell episode, either, that saw the ratings surge, but the entire last week of the host’s run on one of the best game shows of all time. Wheel of Fortune hit an 18-week high, averaging 8.5 million viewers over the final five episodes of Season 41. Each day from June 3-9, the show ranked in the top 15 out of approximately 28,000 network, cable and syndicated broadcasts.
Similar to audiences wanting to see Pat Sajak’s farewell message — and Vanna White’s sweet memories of their time together — people are likely to be just as curious about how Ryan Seacrest slides into the role for Season 42. Time will tell how the ratings compare to the ones mentioned above, but anything similar would likely give Sony some confirmation that American Idol host was the most logical choice to fill Sajak’s shoes.
It’s not lost on Ryan Seacrest how big of an ask that is, either, and he has said that he does feel the pressure. However, Drew Carey — who famously replaced another game show icon in Bob Barker on The Price Is Right — isn’t really concerned about Seacrest being able to master the gig, given his extensive background in hosting.
It also doesn’t hurt that Ryan Seacrest will have co-host Vanna White by his side, as the letter-turner signed a new contract to guarantee that she’ll be around for at least a couple more seasons. White — who, like Pat Sajak, has been on Wheel of Fortune for more than 40 years — started shooting promos with Seacrest months before Sajak’s exit, so it’ll be fun to see the chemistry they’ve developed when we finally get to see them take the stage together.
The incoming host has said his version of the game show won’t be different from the iteration that we’re used to seeing, but viewers may still notice some subtle changes. Camera angles, for instance, may have to be adjusted due to Seacrest’s height, which could be noticeable to fans who are used to a very specific look. Whatever happens, I can’t wait to see it, and come September, we’ll see how many millions of people tune in with me.
