Jeopardy! guest host Ken Jennings SLAMMED over wheelchair tweet just days after being named guest host following death of Alex Trebek
- Ken Jennings, who will be guest hosting Jeopardy! following the death of Alex Trebek, faced backlash online for a 2014 tweet he posted about ‘hot’ people in wheelchairs
- ‘Nothing sadder than a hot person in a wheelchair’, he posted at the time
- Jennings addressed the post in 2018, and called it an ‘inept’ joke
- Ken was the first of a series of guest hosts announced to replace Trebek following his death at age 80
- Jennings claimed the show’s ‘Greatest Of All Time’ title in a competition last year
Ken Jennings, the Jeopardy! record-holder who will be guest hosting the show following the death of Alex Trebek, has sparked outrage over a resurfaced tweet he posted in 2014 about ‘hot’ people in wheelchairs.
‘Nothing sadder than a hot person in a wheelchair,’ Jennings, 46, wrote.
Jennings, who appears to have now deleted the tweet, addressed the insensitive post in 2018, but the message has regained steam in light of his upcoming guest hosting role.
Slammed: Ken Jennings, the Jeopardy! record-holder who will be guest hosting the show following the death of Alex Trebek, is facing backlash for a tweet he posted in 2014 about ‘hot’ people in wheelchairs
Jennings said in 2018 he apologized ‘personally’ to those who reached out to him about the tweet, which he called an ‘inept’ joke.
‘I never did a public flogging thing for this but I did apologize personally to angry/hurt people who reached out personally,’ he tweeted at the time. ‘it was a joke so inept that it meant something very different in my head & I regret the ableist plain reading of it!’
Now that the tweet has resurfaced, Jennings is facing the wrath of angry Twitter users hurt and angered over his original post.
‘As a hot person in a wheelchair Ken Jennings can go to hell,’ @debbiebooth7622 tweeted.
Insensitive: Jennings sparked outrage over this hurtful tweet he posted in 2014
‘It was a joke so inept’: Jennings addressed the controversial post in 2018
Jeopardy! record-holder: Jennings has won 74 games of the game show in a row
‘Nothing sadder than an unapologetic ableist hosting Jeopardy!’ tweeted @cheesepickles.
‘I’m sitting in a wheelchair in this photo, though it’s not visible (I’m wearing the gloves I usually wear when I wheel myself around because it’s easier on my hands)! I think I’m cute! I’d like to see @KenJennings say there’s nothing sadder than seeing this photo to my face!!’ @jenmacramos tweeted.
‘Hi @KenJennings, I’m a disabled wheelchair user and I’m #HotButNotATragedy,’ @edgy_evergreen tweeted.
Actress Yvette Nicole Brown even weighed in on the controversy as she posted a link announcing his guest hosting role.
‘I’m mad all over again’: Twitter users took Jennings to task over the tweet
‘Nope,’ she tweeted along with the story.
When asked why Yvette disliked the selection, she replied, ‘Peep his old tweets and get back at me.’
Jennings was announced as the first of a series of guest hosts replacing Trebek just a few days ago.
An official tweet revealed: ‘We will resume production on 11/30 with a series of interim guest hosts from the Jeopardy! family – starting with Ken Jennings. Additional guest hosts to be announced.’
Jennings won 74 games of Jeopardy! in a row and claimed the show’s ‘Greatest Of All Time’ title in a competition last year.
A long-term host for Trebek, who passed away at age 80 following a battle with pancreatic cancer earlier this month, will be named later.
‘Peep his old tweets’: Actress Yvette Nicole Brown weighed in on the controversy
Mourning an icon: Trebek passed away at age 80 following a battle with pancreatic cancer earlier this month