Wheel of Fortune season premiere divides fans as ‘hideous’ set gets more backlash than ‘boring’ Ryan Seacrest

RYAN Seacrest’s Wheel of Fortune era has officially begun, and viewers didn’t hold back their thoughts on social media about the new spin.

Ryan , 49, took the stage with the iconic Vanna White , 67, on Monday, September 9, for the big Season 42 premiere .

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune

Tonight’s Wheel of Fortune episode was not just business as usual in the game show world.

It was a sheer TV milestone that marked Ryan’s first episode as host instead of the legendary Pat Sajak , who had hosted for 41 years.

The audience roared during their entrance as the American Idol fixture walked Vanna out through the bright new set , which had sliding doors center-stage.

Ryan wore a black suit and tie, while Vanna upped the ante in a regal blue gown.

“Welcome to the show,” Vanna told Ryan as she clasped his arm. “So good to have you.”

‘BIG SHOES TO FILL’

Ryan took center stage and shared a lengthy message with fans.

“Welcome to Wheel of Fortune. I am your host Ryan Seacrest. I still can’t believe my luck being here tonight to continue this legacy of this incredible show.”

“And, of course, my good friend Vanna White. Thank you for the very warm welcome,” he added.

The audience gave Vanna a lengthy round of applause as she nodded to Ryan from the puzzle board.

“Hosting Wheel of Fortune is a dream job,” Ryan continued. “I have been a fan of this show since I was a kid, watching it in Atlanta with my family.

“And I know Wheel has been in your living rooms for the past 40 years.

“And I am so grateful to be invited in.”

“I also know I have some very big shoes to fill,” Ryan added, not mentioning Pat by name. “So let’s play Wheel of Fortune.”

With that, Ryan got into the game, and fans quickly realized the show was nearly unrecognizable – host aside.

Ryan Seacrest's Current Jobs

Ryan Seacrest is quite the workaholic, with the Hollywood multiphenate juggling perhaps more ongoing jobs than any other A-lister:

• -Host of Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on ABC
• -Host of American Top 40 on KIIS-FM
• -Host of On Air with Ryan Seacrest on KIIS-FM
• -Host of American Idol since its very first season in 2001
• -Host of Wheel of Fortune as of 2024

Ryan has exited many previous roles in the past few years to get where he is today, including as an executive producer of Hulu’s The Kardashians and co-host of Live! with Kelly and Mark .

Hard work pays off; according to Celebrity Net Worth, Ryan’s worth a fortune of $450 million

The players were Terry, Corina, and Cindy – and Ryan kept things spinning swiftly with them, bringing a high-energy style.

However, viewers see the show from home in a different way – the screen shows all three contestants on their own panels as they answer puzzles.

The brightly lit new set and shiny puzzle board distracted many wheel watchers from even having opinions on the new host.

‘AWFUL’ SET

Fans on social media had many thoughts about the premiere, saying the new set would take more getting used to than Ryan.

“I get that Wheel of Fortune replaced Pat Sajak because he retired, but why did they have to change the entire set?!” one X user wrote.

“I usually don’t tweet about much stuff I watch but why does Wheel of Fortune look so awful now like wtf,” wrote another.

“So, I’m sure nobody else cares… but this new Wheel of Fortune set just isn’t doing it for me,” wrote another.

“The set sucks. And what’s this with his hands in his pockets?” wrote a third.

“This new set is going to take more getting used to than Ryan. everything is so computer generated and bright,” wrote a fourth.

“Not impressed with the new wheel of fortune set,” another shared.

“The new set hurts my eyes,” a viewer stated.

“Why does the new set look like some old-fashioned clock factory with animated mice crawling around,” wrote one user.

Wheel of Fortune

FIRST THOUGHTS ON RYAN

Others had mostly positive initial thoughts on Ryan, though naturally, not everyone.

“Ryan Seacrest is boring,” one critic wrote.

“I gotta say…I don’t understand the hate – Ryan Seacrest isn’t that bad as host,” wrote another X user.

“First impression of Ryan Seacrest hosting is that he’s doing it without notecards,” remarked a third.

Ryan previously shared that he memorized contestants’ intros and would not rely on cue cards.

“That takes a ton of skill and confidence and also shows a lot of personal character in learning the game and the contestants,” they continued.

Terry ended up winning the game with an impressive $25,849 haul, and he told Corina her “spirit and energy were unmatched” as she won football tickets to any NFL game of her choosing.

Terry was unable to get the bonus round, which was “Digital Footprint,” and Ryan gave him a firm handshake, thanking him for being there on his first night.

ABC

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune

ABC

RYAN TAKES THE WHEEL

After endless anticipation, a head-spinning press tour, and rumors of stale co-host chemistry , Wheel of Fortune’s new season is here.

Ryan has now replaced Pat as host and joins TV royalty Vanna as the show’s new puzzle-presenting pair.

Pat has been the host since 1981 (Vanna since 1982), a record for the longest game show host ever, so it’s quite the moment.

Pat’s final episode aired on June 7, 2024 a tearjerker watched by millions almost a year after he announced his departure.

Just weeks after Pat announced his retirement a year earlier, the American Idol fixture was secured as his replacement.

Some fans were initially puzzled by Ryan’s selection, as he already has a full plate and many jobs.

There were also reports that he and Vanna “don’t jibe” on set, and she even admitted she was “very scared” of the huge change.

A studio source also exclusively told The U.S. Sun that Ryan was not Pat’s choice .

“Ryan wasn’t Pat’s choice to replace him and Pat deliberately stayed out of that process,” they said.

“Ryan was extremely smart when he took the job to be utterly respectful to Pat at every turn.

“Ryan did not want there to be even an ounce of tension between them.

“Ryan acts like he has Pat’s support and for now, that helps him [Ryan] enjoy this honeymoon period, where the fans are going to decide if he’s a good fit for the show.”

However, Ryan has made it known in his many interviews leading up to tonight that he’s taking the big gig seriously.

“I want the audience to feel like this is the right decision,” he told USA Today . “I want [the transition] to be something that’s not jarring, that’s seamless.”

Ryan also made clear he wouldn’t host unless he did so alongside Vanna, whom he met in 2007 at Merv Griffin’s funeral.

“I didn’t want to do it with anyone other than Vanna,” Ryan told Variety. “It was critical for me to have her on the show as long as she wants to be.”

“And certainly for the launch – to have two different people would be too much change at once.

“I made it very clear that that would be a mistake if they didn’t have her on board.”

Vanna has been with the show since 1982, but unlike Pat, she decided she wasn’t ready to retire just yet.

Vanna told Variety: “I was not ready to retire. I have at least two more years with the show and we’ll see from there.”

Vanna will host for at least two years as she signed a new contract with a “significant” pay bump to turn letters until 2026.

Meanwhile, legendary host Pat isn’t gone for good, as he’ll return to Celebrity Wheel of Fortune on October 7 in his final farewell.

Wheel of Fortune airs weeknights at 7:30 p.m. Eastern – check your local listings.

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Wheel of Fortune