Ryan Seacrest on Vanna White and Pat Sajak’s Advice

When “Wheel of Fortune” began filming this summer, it was the first time in 40 seasons that the announcer didn’t follow his announcement with, “Ladies and gentlemen, here are the stars of our show…” My names are Pat Sajak and Vanna White. Instead, Ryan Seacrest waited backstage, arm in arm with White as they prepared to open the doors to the new LED-lit wall so they could walk through and spin the wheel.

“We have the same doors on American Idol, the same door operator,” Seacrest says when asked what was going through his head. “So you look like you’re behind the same set, because the back is just screens and plugs.”

Of course, Seacrest is a veteran radio and TV host, having followed in the footsteps of broadcast legends like Casey Casem, Dick Clark and Regis Philbin, hosting everything from New Year’s Eve telecasts to morning shows. But on that first day of filming “Wheel,” he was nervous. He wanted to do a show for the studio audience and the viewers at home.

“It was about us wanting it to be received in a way that made sense and was natural for people,” says Seacrest.

It was helpful to have White, a friend of 20 years, by his side, though she was nervous about it, too. “Because he has a tough job,” White says. “He’s trained and trained and trained and done everything he could to do it well. And he’s done it.”

Susan Preti, head of gaming programming at Sony Pictures Television, was waiting on the other side of those doors with her iPhone ready to film the event for her boss, Sony Pictures Entertainment president and COO Ravi Ahuja, who was out of the country on the big day.

“Everyone worked so hard to get to that moment,” Britt recalls. “The excitement was building and it was palpable.” Before pressing send, she reviewed the tape. “You could hear me gasping for air,” Britt adds. “It was emotional. It was a once-in-a-career event to have Ryan Seacrest come in to replace Pat Sajak, and for it to be so seamless, and for it to be so good. I pinched myself.”

The stakes were high for everyone. When Sajak announced his retirement in June, Seacrest was Sony Pictures Television executives’ “first choice” to take over. Seacrest had just left “Live With Kelly and Ryan,” which freed up space in his busy schedule. And with Sajak still filming a final season, he had a year to prepare.

“It’s a very important thing to me,” Seacrest says of being chosen to host “Wheel.” In the 1990s, the show’s creator, Merv Griffin, hired him to host “Click,” a teen game show. At the time, Seacrest was brainstorming ideas with Griffin over lunch at the Beverly Hilton pool. One day, the subject of “Wheel” came up, and the TV mogul explained what made the show so special.

“He told me it could last forever, because it’s a simple show that people love to be involved in. You can have a busy, stressful, busy day, and then sit down and take your mind off everything else. He said that was the key,” Seacrest recalled. “At no point in that conversation did I think I would get the chance to host.”

A dedicated student, Seacrest combed through the Wheel’s archive of more than 8,000 episodes, watching hundreds of shows and picking out the right moments from each decade to learn the nuances of the game. Executive producer Bellamy Blackstone built a miniature version of the Wheel (about the size of an SUV tire), and they practiced in conference rooms around the country while Seacrest traveled for work.

“They brought a computer with a screen with the control panel and all the sound effects, so I could feel it,” he says. The full-size wheel is harder to operate than it looks. “It’s heavy. I almost fell over trying to spin it.”

Seacrest also visited the set to watch Sajak and White in action. There, he noticed a well-functioning machine called the “Wheel.” The crew shoots six episodes a day, with only time for the hosts to change their wardrobes and welcome a trio of new contestants between episodes.

“Wow, they don’t miss a beat. I don’t want to slow them down,” Seacrest thought. “It’s hard to come to a brand-new show where things are slow and you’re trying to put it together and make sense of it,” he explained. “If it’s not a live show, which I really love, that’s the kind of show you want because there are no untethered knots.”

This was one of the few times Seacrest got advice from Sajak before handing over the game. Sajak was simple: “Vana is the greatest person to work with. It’s the best show on TV. You’re just going to move people through the game while they win money. There’s not much to think about.” (White’s advice was also straightforward: “Be yourself and have fun.”)

Seacrest was optimistic that White would continue to be on “Wheel.” They first met at Griffin’s funeral in 2007, where they sat next to each other, and developed a casual friendship in the years that followed. When Seacrest began talks about joining the show, White was in the middle of her own contract negotiations.

“As a producer and host, I didn’t want to do this with anyone other than Vanna. It was essential for me to have her on the show as long as she wanted to,” Seacrest says. “And of course for the launch of the show — having two different people on it at once would be a huge change. I made it very clear that it would be a mistake if they weren’t on board.”

(White eventually extended her contract through the 2025-26 season. “I wasn't ready to retire,” she said. “I have at least two more years with the show and we'll see from there.” diverse.)

Seacrest seemed to have perfected his wheel work by mid-August, when diverse The group visited while he and White were filming episodes that will air during Veterans Day week. Sony's sound studio is decorated with American flag motifs on the LED wall and panels on either side of the wheel and on the floor below it. It's all part of an Art Deco-inspired redesign — a throwback to the early years of “Wheel.”

“By the time Ryan came on set, he was so prepared that he was able to do what he does best and connect with these contestants in a very authentic way,” Britt says. “It’s really fun. He did a better job than expected in that aspect. It’s a whole new energy.”

Seacrest has managed to keep the levels of joy and glee when the contestants land on the million-dollar brink, and the annoyance when they declare themselves bankrupt in the next round, all flowing back into normalcy without any effort. It’s amazing how much energy he has. (Sitting through half a day of taping, let alone hosting round after round, was exhausting. Clapping for “big money” for two hours is very draining.)

“Good – wheel “I’ll be back soon,” Seacrest says with a smile as he cracks a silly joke during a commercial break. He looks like he’s having a great time.

The Wheel team also tends to get involved. At a time when linear TV ratings are declining, there’s pressure to maintain the show’s strong average viewership (more than 20 million viewers tune in each week). So as the team was developing promotional materials for the new season, they realized that “RSTLNE,” the set of messages given to contestants to start the extra round, could be an apt acronym: “Ryan Seacrest Launches a New Era.” Then on Friday night, Seacrest and White lit up the Santa Monica Pier’s famous Ferris Wheel with an interactive display of laser projectors that transformed the landmark into an iconic spinning wheel.

“I thought, ‘This is a really clever, memorable way to do the show,’” Seacrest says of the promo. “And I hope it’s a long-term thing. I’ve signed on to do a lot of a lot Years of this show.” How many? “As many as you can.”

The 42nd season of “Wheel of Fortune” premieres on September 9. It is distributed domestically by CBS Media Ventures and internationally by Paramount Global Content Distribution, both divisions of Paramount.