They’re not putting any writers in jeopardy.
“Jeopardy!” champion Ray Lalonde announced last week that he wouldn’t cross the picket line to take part in this season’s “Tournament of Champions” if the continued Hollywood writers’ strike continues into the autumn.
“As a supporter of the trade union movement, a union member’s son and a proud union member myself I even have informed the show’s producers that if the strike stays unresolved I is not going to cross a picket line to play within the tournament of champions,” Lalonde wrote in a Reddit post within the r/Jeopardy forum.
The Toronto contender explained more about his decision to The Post on Monday, describing that he had heard rumblings in regards to the show’s taping plans from “industry insiders” on Facebook.
He also saw that The Hollywood Reporter had reported that the syndicated series would use previously written material from the past 4 many years, and he noted that the show’s website listed taping dates for August.
“My immediate thought was ‘Rattling, in the event that they try this I can’t play,’ followed by the thought that in the event that they tape tournaments starting in August they’ll be calling me soon with airline and hotel reservations, so I even have to warn them soon,” Lalonde told The Post in an announcement.
Lalonde wrote that he “wrestled with this for a few days,” claiming that he sent an e-mail about his decision to the team behind the show.
He also posted in “Jeopardy!” groups across various social media platforms, including a personal Facebook group for the show’s former players, in an effort to “reach as much of the ‘Jeopardy!’ community” as he could.
“My first thought was to present the show a couple of days to read my e-mail first but after stewing about it for half an hour I made a decision to only post my statement and the web very rapidly did the remaining,” Lalonde explained.
“Like I said I hoped that a couple of people would read it and agree and which may put some pressure on the show to not adopt this plan of action, I never anticipated the response it got, especially from my fellow Tournament qualifiers, so now that is an even bigger thing and we’ll soon see how the show responds,” he continued.
The Post reached out to Sony Pictures for comment.
Lalonde won 13 consecutive games this season for a complete of $386,400.
Many former “Jeopardy!” contestants weighed in on Lalonde’s Reddit post, including champion Cris Pannullo, who pledged to remain behind the picket line throughout the ongoing strike.
The forum’s moderators confirm the identities of the show’s contestants, in accordance with The Philadelphia Inquirer.
“As I even have already told Ray personally, though like all of us I’m an enormous Jeopardy fan and it was a dream to look on the show, I fully agree along with his stance and is not going to take part in any games comprised of recycled clues while the WGA strike is in effect,” Pannullo wrote.
Pannullo won nearly $750,000, way over contenders for the following Tournament of Champions.
Ben Chan, one other tournament hopeful, who had a nine-game winning streak, thanked Lalonde for his message.
“Ray, thanks for taking this stand,” Chan commented. “In case you are out, I’m out.”
“I’ll stand with you, Ray!” wrote former contestant Hannah Wilson, an eight-game “Jeopardy!” champion. “A TOC with all recycled clues doesn’t sound like much fun to play in, anyway.”
Members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike in May to petition for higher wages, regulation surrounding artificial intelligence, and higher pay from streaming services.
Writers are a necessary a part of “Jeopardy!,” as they write the questions which might be read each episode.
Following suit, earlier this month, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Radio and Television Artists (SAG-AFTRA) unanimously voted to stop working after its contract expired, meaning that more entertainment professionals have joined the picket line.
In May, The Post reported that “Jeopardy!” host Mayim Bialik walked off the set throughout the final week of taping for Season 39 in support of the WGA strike.
