Jim Thornton has been suspended from “Wheel of Fortune” after an airplane incident led to police questioning.
The 61-year-old announcer, who has voiced the game show since 2011, was met by law enforcement at his destination gate following a May 14 flight. A fellow passenger had allegedly complained to a flight attendant about Thornton’s screen activity, prompting officers to be notified. Thornton was questioned and released without arrest or charges.
Thornton’s attorney, Allison Hart, detailed her client’s account in a letter obtained Thursday. She explained that Thornton had become active in suicide-prevention advocacy after losing a close family member to suicide two years prior, and had spent time in chat rooms offering support to individuals suffering from suicidal ideation.
“One of the sites my client has visited is 988lifeline.org, and its chat forum chat.988lifeline.org. ….. Through an acquaintance in the suicide prevention space, my client was misdirected to a forum with a similar url, the forum lifeline.chat, which my client understood to be a forum offering suicide prevention support similar to 988lifeline.org and chat.988lifeline.org,” she wrote.
Hart continued, “When my client understood what the website was about, he left the page and has not visited since. The website lifeline.chat itself is not unlawful, there is no unlawful child pornography or other pedophilic content, and my client has never viewed, downloaded or consumed any child pornography whether on that commercial flight in May or at any other time.”
She emphasized that law enforcement quickly determined no crime had occurred. “It is for that reason that my client was never arrested or charged with a crime. Law enforcement immediately confirmed that no crime had occurred and immediately told my client he was free to go. In short, my client did nothing wrong,” she stated.
American Airlines confirmed that an alleged incident was reported on the flight and that officers were subsequently notified.
Sony, which produces “Wheel of Fortune,” moved swiftly following the incident’s emergence. “We have recently been made aware of allegations concerning Jim Thornton,” a spokesperson said. “He has been suspended from ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ and we are recasting while we conduct a thorough investigation.”
Thornton was suspended Tuesday, and producers are reportedly editing him out of the upcoming 44th season while scrambling to find a replacement announcer. The move marks a dramatic turn for the voice actor, who joined the program more than a decade ago following the death of former announcer Charlie O’Donnell.
Thornton had worked alongside Pat Sajak through the host’s final years on the program. Sajak retired in 2024 after more than four decades at the helm, making way for Ryan Seacrest to take over hosting duties.
The incident has drawn significant attention given the show’s high profile and the sensitive nature of the allegations involved, even as Thornton’s legal team maintains his actions were entirely inadvertent and quickly corrected.
Thornton will reportedly be edited out of upcoming episodes as producers continue their search for a replacement announcer.