James Holzhauer, who amassed winnings at a startling rate during his 32-game win streak on “Jeopardy!,” wasn’t playing games when he eviscerated Mike Richards on Tuesday.
After word got out that Richards was pushed out as executive producer following his resignation as the quiz show’s new host, Holzhauer tweeted a GIF of “Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead” from “The Wizard of Oz.”
The former champ also had plenty to say about Richards, whose sexist comments on a past podcast came to light when he was announced as the full-time successor to the late Alex Trebek. Richards was also accused of fostering a toxic work environment when he worked on “The Price Is Right.”
“Some judged Mike Richards solely on his podcast comments and formed a negative opinion, but I judged him by the way he treated people backstage at Jeopardy and formed a much stronger negative opinion,” wrote Holzhauer, who embarked on his celebrated “Jeopardy!” run in 2019. Holzhauer included a Hollywood Reporter article that detailed allegations of Richards’ inappropriate behavior as a producer on “The Price Is Right.”
In another tweet, Holzhauer asked: “But did he deserve the benefit of the doubt for the job he did running Jeopardy? Also no.”
Richards filmed a handful of episodes as “Jeopardy!” host and they are scheduled to air the week of Sept. 13, according to Sony.
He was also dismissed as an executive producer on “Wheel of Fortune.”