Major Shakeup Spells Sad News For Wheel of Fortune and Pat Sajak Fans
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When Does Celebrity Wheel of Fortune Come Back?
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune was set to premiere on October 14, but sadly, the date has been pushed back considerably. The show will now air beginning mid-season — and it’s all due to football.
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune will now premiere in 2025, according to an October 11 press release from ABC. “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, Press Your Luck and ABC News’ Scamanda will premiere in 2025,” ABC said in a press release shared with TVLine. ABC is adding “six Monday Night Football simulcasts to its previously announced schedule,” forcing the network to bump Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.
More: Ryan Seacrest makes his first big mistake as Wheel of Fortune host
The statement explained: “ABC is a destination for marquee NFL programming including, as part of our new deal, Super Bowl 61 (February 2027), the first of two. The decision to add more simulcast games was made in conjunction with the NFL and is just for the 2024-25 season. This schedule leans into the cross-promotional opportunities maximizing the reach of NFL programming across the Disney ecosystem. ESPN has already aired four exclusive games during 2024 season and will have three additional exclusive games, with two in November and one in December. There are 25 Games on ESPN’s 2024 NFL Schedule.”
The statement added: “Furthermore, this move will give the ABC game shows Celebrity Wheel of Fortune and Press Your Luck a more consistent, weekly run in midseason when there are less preemptions (i.e. football, 2024 election).”
So far, there’s no firm date set for the premiere of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. Some of the episodes have already been filmed since it was expected to air in October 2024.
In June, Sajak announced he was leaving his hosting job at Wheel of Fortune but fans were thrilled that he would be on hand to give his final spin on the celebrity version. Ryan Seacrest took over hosting duties for Sajak beginning with Season 42 of the original game show.
More: Pat Sajak’s salary on Wheel of Fortune revealed
The Celebrity Wheel of Fortune trailer, which was shared earlier this month on the show’s Instagram, has now been removed. In the video, Sajak, standing alongside Vanna White, said, “Get ready for an all-new season of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.” She noted, “Big names, big laughs, and big wins for charity.”
The post’s caption promised: “The stars are coming out for Pat’s final spin! See you October 14 for the season premiere of #CelebrityWheelOfFortune.”
Among the stars competing for $1 million to go to the charity of their choosing are: Rainn Wilson, Ellie Kemper, and Oscar Nuñez from The Office, Josh Gad, Justin Long, and Rachael Harris, who appeared on New Girl, and Veep stars Sam Richardson, Randall Park, and Matt Walsh. Tiffany Haddish, Regina Hall, Joe Manganiello, Katharine McPhee, Andrew Rannells, Pete Holmes, and Cameron Brink are also set to appear.
For more on primetime shows, check out our photo gallery on the best nighttime shows ranked.
