‘Wheel of Fortune’ suspends announcer Jim Thornton

Longtime “Wheel of Fortune” announcer Jim Thornton has been suspended from the show, and his role will be recast, studio officials said. Sony Pictures Television Studios confirmed Tuesday in a statement to NBC News that Thornton will not be involved with the show as the studio investigates allegations against him. “We have recently been made aware of allegations concerning Jim Thornton. He has been suspended from ‘Wheel of Fortune’ and we are recasting while we conduct a thorough investigation,” the studio said. It did not provide additional details about the allegations or investigation. Thornton did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. TMZ was first to report Thornton’s suspension. The outlet also reported that the allegations involve an incident between Thornton and an American Airlines passenger on a flight in May. In a statement to NBC News, American Airlines did not mention Thornton by name. The airline did confirm there was an incident on a flight in May. “On ​May 14, ​American Airlines ​Flight ​1276 ​was met by ​law enforcement ​upon ​arrival at ​Los ​Angeles ​International ​Airport ​(LAX) following concerns reported by a customer ​onboard,” the statement said. Thornton, 66, has been the voice of “Wheel of Fortune” since 2010, the year original announcer Charlie O’Donnell died at 78. Thornton was initially a guest announcer, according to IMDb, and officially joined the show as the main announcer for its 29th season in 2011. He has announced 2,980 episodes and has served as an announcer for “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” since 2021. His voice acting credits include roles in “The Cleveland Show,” “Celebrity Deathmatch” and “Monsters, Inc.” as well. Thornton has spent most of his time on “Wheel of Fortune” behind the cameras, with Pat Sajak and Vanna White serving as the hosts until Sajak’s departure in June 2024. Ryan Seacrest began hosting the game show with White in September 2024.