Yesterday it was confirmed through Twitter that long-time Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek passed away after battling pancreatic cancer for over a year at age 80. The legendary game show icon continued to show love for his work by filming new Jeopardy! episodes just over a week before his death, and since the announcement fans of Trebek have not been shy to share back some of that love.
Trebek had been hosting Jeopardy! since 1984, so throughout four decades the man found his place in the living rooms, televisions and hearts of different generations. The show’s legacy is only as big as Trebek himself, so as more and more iconic Jeopardy! clips continue to surface in social media, it’s good to discover one notable Twitter user made sure to honor the man in a way everyone will be able to enjoy.
In a Tweet by Ryan Reynolds, the actor announced that Trebek had filmed a cameo appearance in Free Guy, Reynolds' upcoming video game comedy movie. He went on to highlight Trebek’s best qualities, as a gracious, funny, generous and reassuring person, while not letting anyone forget that Trebek was “of course, Canadian”, just like him.
Free Guy will be Trebek’s final appearance in film or television, considering Sony Pictures Television, the show’s producer, confirmed that Jeopardy!’s final episode with Trebek will air on Christmas Day, while Free Guy likely won't be released until sometime in 2021.
Aside from Jeopardy!, it seems incredibly fitting for Trebek’s final outing to be playing himself on video game movie, as he was such an iconic man, that he’d already been asked to play himself in shows and movies like Rain Man, Seinfeld, How I Met your Mother, The Simpsons, SNL and Family Guy, just to name a few. Trebek’s role in Jeopardy! was of such cultural significance that it led to one of SNL’s best long-lasting skits in “Celebrity Jeopardy”, with Will Ferrell doing an excellent job imitating him by Trebek’s own admission, especially when paired with Darrell Hammond’s Sean Connery, who also recently passed away at age 90.
Unfortunately, given Disney’s latest delays dealing with their movie schedule, Free Guy is still waiting for a new premiere date, so there’s no clue to when Trebek’s cameo will be available for audiences. Meanwhile, there are plenty of well-known cameos by Trebek and still a small bunch of Jeopardy! episodes yet to come.
Trebek’s final Jeopardy! episode will air on December 25th.
Free Guy is yet to be rescheduled.
Source: Ryan Reynolds|Twitter