When Ryan Seacrest Finally Faced the Legacy of Pat Sajak on ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ What He Discovered Left the Entire Studio in Shock — Audience Gasps as the Truth About His Role, His Reputation, and a Startling On-Air Moment Turned the Game Show World Upside Down 

Ryan Seacrest had a big job ahead of him when he took over for Pat Sajak on Wheel of Fortune — and now, the results are in.

The 42nd season of the long-running game show turned out to be a success for the 50-year-old TV personality. He and cohost Vanna White saw an uptick in ratings, and the network is excited about the smooth transition after 41 seasons of Sajak at the helm. According to TV Insider, CBS was thrilled that Wheel Of Fortune was “the only syndicated game show to post growth and was one of only two syndicated series to increase year to year.”

Wheel of Fortune is still in the No. 2 spot behind its sister show, Jeopardy!, but the season saw an average of 7.93 million viewers — that’s 74,000 more eyeballs on the series than last year. That’s good news for the series in the long run as Seacrest and White will continue together as a team through the 2025-2026 television season.

White’s current contract runs through the 43rd season, but it’s unclear whether she’s considering retirement. In May 2024, she was asked by TV Insider whether retirement was on her radar, but she remained neutral on the topic.