Ryan Seacrest Jokes He Plans to ‘Postpone Retirement’ Ahead of ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Debut

Ryan Seacrest is not thinking about slowing down in his career just yet, especially after landing the Wheel of Fortune hosting gig.

“I’m beyond excited,” Seacrest, 49, gushed during a Friday, December 29, appearance on Good Morning America. “I mean, Pat Sajak is a legend. No one can replace him. Vanna White, she’s become a dear friend. I’m so much looking forward to being on stage with her. And I love the show and giving away cash and prizes.”

Seacrest announced in February that he was leaving Live With Kelly and Ryan with Kelly Ripa’s husband, Mark Consuelos, taking over his daytime seat. Several months later, Seacrest revealed that he will fill Sajak’s shoes as the next host of Wheel of Fortune. (After 41 seasons hosting the game show, Sajak, 77, plans to leave at the end of the 2023-2024 season in the summer. Seacrest will begin filming in September 2024.)

“I’m very excited about that and fortunately I signed a deal to stay on the radio with iHeartRadio for a few more years, so I will postpone retirement,” he quipped on GMA. “I thought after Live With Kelly and Ryan I was going to take a break, but why?”

Seacrest, who also is the host of American Idol, will next be seen emceeing Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on Sunday, December 31. Since 2005, Seacrest has hosted the holiday broadcast for ABC live from Times Square. (He formally assumed the lead host role in 2013 after Dick Clark’s death.)

“I was a kid watching this show, watching other people do the things that I get a chance to do every day. Wanting to do it. And I feel like I’ve gotta prove that I’m worthy of doing it every single time,” Seacrest exclusively told Us Weekly in December 2022. “I think that is part of what keeps it exciting for me too.”

He added at the time: “We have three live countdowns in this show, which I never thought was even possible when I first started. But we’ve got [broadcasts in] Puerto Rico, Times Square and New Orleans, and we’ve also added another party on the West Coast. It’ll be L.A. as we always have a Disneyland [portion].”

Sunday will be Seacrest’s 19th time ringing in the new year on Rockin’ Eve.

“The show goes past 1 a.m. but [there’s] the adrenaline rush,” he said on Friday. “So, you get out there, you pace yourself a little bit. We start at 8:00, so you’re pacing yourself, but there’s such a rush that runs through your body when you’re out there and to think about being under that ball at midnight. It’s such a bucket list opportunity that I get to do every year.”