Vanna White Breaks Silence on Highly-Publicized Wheel of Fortune Contract Dispute — and Her Decision to Stay
Vanna White says the “rumors” surrounding her possible Wheel of Fortune exit were greatly exaggerated.
The game show’s iconic letter turner — who last month inked a new contract that will keep her at the syndicated hit through Summer 2026 — downplayed the high-stakes (and very public) negotiations that preceded the deal. (White’s reps were reportedly asking Sony to substantially increase her $3 million annual salary to bring it more in line with retirement-bound Pat Sajak‘s $15 million paycheck.)
“It was because people just have rumors,” she tells People of the media frenzy. “Everything is so blown out of proportion, not just with my stuff, with everybody’s stuff.”
White went on to say that she is a “strong person” who refused to let the headlines get to her, adding, “I’m not going to do anything I don’t want to do or that I don’t believe in. My mother taught me that at a young age and I’m sticking to my guns.”
White also acknowledged that she did consider leaving Wheel alongside Sajak next summer and ahead of Ryan Seacrest’s arrival in Fall 2024. “Of course it’s a thought,” she told the mag. “It’s like, ‘Well, wait, if you’re leaving, what am I going to do? How can I stay without you?’ It was a very hard decision for me to make, because it definitely crossed my mind. It’s like, ‘I just don’t know if I can do this without [Pat],’ but I thought about it and I’m not ready to retire.”
And how does she feel about her soon-to-be-co-host Seacrest?
“I know Ryan — he is professional, he’s good at what he does [and] he’s kind,” White shared. “I think it’s going to be good. He’s such a nice guy and he loves what he does. He said, ‘Look, I am not replacing Pat. I’m not going in to try to fill Pat’s shoes. No one can ever replace him.’ He says he’s coming in to do a good job and to keep the show going. I’m looking forward to working with him.”
I’m glad they worked things out. It would’ve been too much of a shock for the show to lose Pat and Vanna all at once.
Not surprised this wasn’t as big a deal as reported. Jobs that could be easily and even more efficiently done by machines probably don’t support excessive money demands.