Wheel of Fortune execs ‘desperate to hold onto’ Seacrest amid Vanna White ‘salary issue’

Wheel of Fortune bosses are reportedly eager to ‘lock’ Ryan Seacrest in with a flashy new deal amid his ratings success – despite Vanna White’s lower salary.

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The executives over at Wheel of Fortune are eager to hold onto new host Ryan Seacrest.

According to a new report, the big wigs in charge of the long-running game show—that was previously hosted by Pat Sajak—are eager to “lock” Ryan into a pricey new deal.

This comes amid news that the American Idol host already makes “five times more” than co-host Vanna White—something that is allegedly becoming more of a point of contention.

A source told Closer Weekly that Vanna “is not a part of Ryan’s renegotiation at all” because she already negotiated her current deal “around the same time Pat decided to step down from the syndicated version of the show.” Pat left the show back in June.

As for Ryan, the powers that be believe he’s already “proven himself as a worthy successor to Pat [Sajak] and more importantly, as somebody who can bring new fans into the Wheel franchise.”

The source added: “His numbers are holding up and that’s triggering a renegotiation as Sony TV looks to lock Ryan in for more than just his initial deal.”

Though the insider acknowledges that Vanna — who has been on the show since 1982 — is “heart of Wheel of Fortune in a lot of ways,” Ryan “is the one with the leverage.”

The source even suggests that he is well on his way to becoming “one of the highest-paid game show hosts in history because of the results he’s delivered so far.”

However, his ratings and lucrative success may cause tension with his on-air counterpart.

“For the time being, Vanna is staying with the show but the suddenly increased viewership is enough to make her question the deal she’s been under,” the source claimed. “She’s going to have a front-row seat watching Ryan get a giant raise and a long-term commitment from the studio. Everybody expects that she’ll follow suit and ask for more money sooner rather than later.”

Despite the alleged drama behind-the-scenes, Ryan, Vanna, and his Wheel of Fortune staff seem to be closer than ever.

Ahead of Christmas, Ryan posted touching footage from his holiday lunch with his game show crew. Addressing the crowd, thanked everyone for welcoming into the “Wheel of Fortune” and admitted that he had been “scared to death.”

“I was nervous about walking into something that is so successful,” he said.

At the conclusion of his heartfelt speech, his colleagues burst into applause.