Wheel Of Fortune Fans Worry About Ryan Seacrest As He Shares His Feelings After Contestants ‘Get Physical’ With Him.

(Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Fans of Wheel of Fortune could probably compare, contrast and debate for days the differences between Ryan Seacrest and one of the greatest game show hosts of all time Pat Sajak, but there’s one aspect of the game that’s way more prevalent in the current iteration. Contestants have a tendency to “get physical” with Seacrest, and he weighed in on how he feels about that.

Ryan Seacrest’s takeover of one of the most popular game shows has been largely considered a success, as he’ll celebrate one year with the show in September of the 2025 TV schedule. In a discussion with THR about his experience so far, Seacrest revealed his favorite part of the gig, while acknowledging that he’s taken a beating. He said:

I love interviewing the contestants. It can get physical, too! Maybe it’s my size, but the men throw me around. I think, ‘Oh my God, it’s coming.’ (Laughs.) I bruise easily, you should know.

Compare the two Wheel of Fortune hosts all you want, but Pat Sajak certainly never had to worry about being manhandled by contestants in the same way as 5-foot-8 Ryan Seacrest. The new host has had several experiences with overexcited players, including being put in a headlock by a former pro wrestler and being tossed to the ground, which you can see below:

It should be noted that some of Ryan Seacrest’s tumbles are self-inflicted. The host — who will likely never live down that clip of him falling out of his chair on Live with Kelly and Ryan — took a surprisingly hard fall while chasing a wheel of cheese back in April. Wheel of Fortune also aired a clip from Seacrest and Vanna White’s ski trip in which the host crashed on the slopes, possibly (but probably not) causing his co-host to drop an F-bomb.

We also can’t forget the time he purposely threw himself to the ground in front of the big wheel to show off his (lack of) breakdancing moves following Raygun’s viral performance at the 2024 Paris Summer Games. Oh Raygun, the Olympics will never be the same.

Still, being willing to fall to the floor is way different than being tackled or wrestled down by a stranger on a game show, but it sounds like the host is a good sport about it. Ryan Seacrest did say interviewing the contestants was his favorite part of the gig — no doubt in addition to giving away money, which was the best part to Pat Sajak and Vanna White.

If you’ve missed all of the above mentioned instances of Ryan Seacrest takedowns and don’t have them recorded somewhere, that’s a problem that Wheel of Fortune is finally fixing. When the game show returns for Season 43 this fall, it will be available for next-day streaming with either a Hulu subscription or a Peacock subscription. (Fans who are tired of Jeopardy! getting pre-empted by news, sports or weather will also be able to catch the quiz show on the same platforms.)

Now you’ll never have to worry about missing any more Ryan Seacrest mistreatment. Stay tuned for that premiere date.