Word on the street is that Pat Sajak wants his job back.
After more than four decades as the host of Wheel of Fortune, Pat hung up his hat and retired last year.
Although he’s since been replaced by new host Ryan Seacrest, Pat has remained in the Wheel of Fortune family in another capacity.
Pat, 78, returned to Sony Pictures Studios to host Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, but a source says the legendary TV host wants his former job back.
Speaking with Radar Online, the insider says that Pat’s positive feedback since returning to Celebrity Wheel of Fortune has “revived his drive to be host on the original again as well.”
“Even if it’s not now, but in a couple of years, he’d do it,” they added.
Apparently, the Emmy Award-winning host never wanted to retire at all but felt as though Wheel of Fortune executives “forced his hand.”
Ryan Seacrest thinks Pat Sajak is acting like a ‘sore loser’
While Ryan has reportedly signed a multi-year deal with Sony Pictures, Pat allegedly doesn’t believe he’ll stick it out for much longer.
While Wheel watchers wait for Ryan’s next move regarding his hosting contract, Pat is “waiting in the wings” to take over his old position.
Purportedly, Ryan has caught wind of Pat’s desire to snatch his job from him, and he thinks his predecessor is “pathetic and is being a sore loser.”
Ryan is resting easy, knowing he’s brought in a ratings boost for the Wheel of Fortune franchise. Therefore, he thinks Pat doesn’t stand a chance and is “wasting his time.”
“There was a reason why Pat lost the gig,” the source added. “He blew it.”
Wheel of Fortune viewers react to Pat’s yearning to get his hosting job back
In response to the rumors, Wheel of Fortune fans took to Reddit to discuss the possibility of Pat fighting Ryan for his old job back.
One Wheel watcher created a thread titled, “Fans Are Starting To Get Used To Ryan Seacrest On Wheel Of Fortune, But Now There’s A Wild New Pat Sajak Rumor Running Around.”
In the caption, the Redditor noted not to believe everything you read but still asked fellow Wheel of Fortune fans to chime in regarding the rumor.
One Wheel watcher wrote that Pat Sajak needs to “find a purpose” since retiring and jokingly invited Pat to hang out at their place.
Another Redditor called the rumors “bulls**t.”
“Even if it were true, WoF would be forced to eat Seacrest’s contract to get Pat back on the show,” the comment continued.
“And they have no incentive, rather they had reasons to ‘force him out’ (which I also don’t believe, Pat WAS the show until he retired). Ratings are fine without Sajak.”
One Wheel of Fortune watcher told Pat to “save face,” while another groaned, “Some people just won’t go away.”
“As awesome as he was, Pat needs to stay retired from Wheel,” u/commentator3 chimed in. “And if he’s really hankering he should find some other project.”