‘Jeopardy!’ to reuse questions, contestants for Season 40 amid writer’s strike
FILE-The first "Jeopardy! Masters" semifinal rounds commence with James Holzhauer, Matt Amodio, Mattea Roach, and Andrew He. (Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images)
"Jeopardy!" is switching up the format of its show slightly with a new change coming this fall.
The popular TV game show will recycle questions and contestants for its upcoming 40th season scheduled for Sept. 11, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Showrunner Michael Davies shared the changes to the show during a recent episode of the "Inside Jeopardy!" podcast.
Citing the episode, Variety noted that Davies said contestant questions in the show’s second chance episodes will consist of material that their WGA writers wrote before the strike and material reused from multiple seasons of the show.
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He also shared during the podcast that the season will feature a second chance tournament for players from Season 37 who lost their initial game, and winners will advance to a Season 37 and Season 38 Champions Wildcard, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Davies also announced that second and third-place prize amounts are increasing by $1,000 each for contestants, making them $3,000 and $2,000. FOX News reported the change was made following criticism from many because contestants had to pay for their own travel to compete in the show.
But despite changes to the show, its spinoff "Celebrity Jeopardy!" will feature original material. Variety reported that staffers completed material for the second season before the writers went on strike.
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These tweaks to the show come as the Hollywood strikes continue resulting in most film and television productions being shut down.
The writers have been on strike since May, and the actors joined them earlier in July. Both unions are worried about how they will be paid at a time when fewer people are paying to go to the movies or watch cable TV in favor of streaming services.
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It’s the first strike for actors from film and television shows since 1980. And it’s the first time two major Hollywood unions have been on strike at the same time since 1960 when Ronald Reagan was the actors’ guild president, according to the Associated Press.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.