“We check each other’s teeth,” Ryan Seacrest said on “Good Morning America” when asked about his backstage routine with Vanna White. The cause is snacking. The two eat nuts between takes and shows, he explained, so each looks out for almond skins on the other. “That’s a good friend,” he said.
The interview came as Seacrest began his first season hosting “Wheel of Fortune” in place of Pat Sajak. Asked what he finds hardest, he named spelling. “I’m not the greatest at spelling,” he admitted. “I rely on autocorrect quite a bit in real life.”
What changes for viewers, in his telling, is small. “It’s the same ‘Wheel of Fortune’ that everybody loves,” Seacrest said. “It’s just me standing there saying, ‘Let’s play.’ That’s really the big difference.”
White said her advice to him was short. “Just be yourself. That’s the best advice I can give you.” She told the “GMA” hosts he had done exactly that.
From Sajak to Seacrest
The show announced in June 2023 that Seacrest would take over after Sajak’s retirement. In a statement obtained by Fox News Digital at the time, Seacrest said he was “truly humbled to be stepping into the footsteps of the legendary Pat Sajak.” He called it “a privilege and pure joy” to watch Sajak and White on television for what he put at 40 years.
Sajak had said on June 12, 2023 that he was leaving. His last episode aired June 7, 2024, and he is due back on October 7 for “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” his final farewell.
In a promo video shared by the show, Sajak handed over the job. “Well, this is it, Ryan,” he said. His advice was that Seacrest would most enjoy “meeting the players and getting to know the audience at home.”
