Wheel of Fortune co-hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White have been fixtures of the beloved ABC game show since they first appeared on it in 1982, but that could all change in the coming years. When Entertainment Tonight asked the duo how much longer they planned to head up the series in a new interview, Sajak responded: “We’re certainly closer to the end than the beginning.”
“I’d like to leave before people tune in and look at me and say, ‘Ooh, what happened to him?’” he continued. “I wouldn’t bet on seeing us in, like, 10 years, I would say.”
Sajak and White recently signed on to host the game show until at least the 2023-2024 season, with Sajak taking on consulting producer duties as Wheel of Fortune heads into its 39th season.
The game show is celebrating its newest season with an array of changes. For instance, announcer Jim Thornton will have an expanded on-screen presence. At the beginning of each episode, he will be given an extra feature on a new podium on stage as he introduces Sajak and White.
Another new feature: Sajak will no longer do Wheel of Fortune‘s “Final Spin.” Instead, that honor will go to the contestant in control of the Wheel at the time.
“If you think about it, by doing the ‘final spin’ I, as host, had an impact on the outcome of the game and that has always bothered me because it just didn’t feel right,” Sajak said of the rule change. “With this change, only the contestants determine the outcome of the game and the host does not impose themself in any way.”
Wheel of Fortune airs weekdays at 7:30/6:30c on ABC. Celebrity Wheel of Fortune Season 2 premieres on Sunday, Sept. 26 at 8/7c on ABC.
