'Jeopardy!' Reveals 4 New Guest Hosts, Including Anderson Cooper and Dr. Oz

Jeopardy! continues to line up its list of guest hosts following the passing of longtime host, [...]

By Kyle Phillippi

Jeopardy! continues to line up its list of guest hosts following the passing of longtime host, Alex Trebek. The show unveiled another set of celebrities who will be stepping behind the lectern. The next four names to be announced include Dr. Mehmet Oz, Anderson Cooper, Savannah Guthrie and Dr. Sanjay Gupta. They join a growing group that previously revealed Aaron Rodgers, Katie Couric, Bill Whitaker, Mayim Bialik and Jeopardy! executive producer, Mike Richards.

The announcement of Cooper comes as little surprise to fans of the show who are aware of his prior interest in becoming host one day. Variety noted early on following Trebek's death that Cooper was not yet in consideration for the gig but had previously had talks in the past, according to sources familiar with the situation. For Oz, this will mark a return to the show after he first appeared as a contestant in a celebrity edition in 2012 alongside Katty Kay and Chris Wallace. Oz placed third. Meanwhile, Guthrie has served as a co-anchor on Today since 2012 and Gupta has been the chief medical correspondent for CNN, first joining the network in 2001.

Since the start of the new year, Ken Jennings has been handling the reins as the lead guest host on Jeopardy. Receiving high praise through the first few weeks, Jennings has made it a point to keep Trebek's legacy going in various ways, including with his "Thank you, Alex" sign-off that has been a big hit with viewers. Jennings holds the game show's longest win-streak with 74 games in a row and also defeated James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter in the Greatest of All-Time tournament. Once his run as guest host is over in the coming weeks, Richards will assume the duties of guest host as the show allows for the celebrities more time to prepare for their new responsibilities.

In the official release announcing the four newest names, Richards said he looks forward to seeing each celebrity present their "unique abilities to the show and to our contestants winning a lot of money that we can match for charity." After Richards, the podium will be handed over to Couric, who will be the first woman ever to step in as host, Rodgers, Whitaker and Bialik, all of whom will serve for charity.

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