Thornton was seemingly scrubbed from the new episodes, which were filmed before the scandal broke out. Producers opted not to use his voice or likeness, and they instead tapped a stand in.
“New announcer isn’t great,” wrote one person on Reddit. “Obviously they needed to make a change with short notice but this guy sounds pretty robotic and not fun to listen to at all. Hopefully he’s just temporary. There’s a ton of voice talent available so I’m surprised they didn’t find someone more talented.”
“The voice is paper thin. It needs more presence and heft to it,” another person criticized.
Other fans agreed, but were hopeful the change was temporary. However, some expressed concern there wasn’t an actor behind the voice at all.
“Pretty sure it’s AI,” said one person, and another agreed, “It’s not a real person. IT’S A GODD–N CLANKER.THEY GOT A F–KING AI.”
A third critic said, “AI for now anyway.”
Radar contacted a Wheel of Fortune representative for comment.
However, not everyone was convinced the voice was AI. “How do you know it’s AI vs a human voice?” one person asked.
Another fan answered, “That’s the fun part, you don’t. They’ve gotten really good over a short period of time.”
Fans analyzed the voice closely, believing it was dubbed over the original cut.
One person wrote, “I think they edited in this voice over Jim because the show had already been recorded. It was like when a foreign film is dubbed with English. It was really obvious when they asked for the description of the Hollywood trip. The contestant seemed to be looking directly at Jim. Just my opinion.”
Critics also attempted to figure out if a producer or intern at the studio could have been providing the voice, but concluded it was difficult to tell.
An online user said, “I think it sounded AI because it wasn’t a live voice in the studio. I’m hoping they improve this scenario with time. Ultimately, this is a very small and unimportant detail to the game itself. As long as we can hear and understand what’s being said. The bar doesn’t need to be high.”
Still, many fans were just happy to be distanced from Thornton’s new reputation.
“They probably don’t want to bring attention to the WOF announcer until the heat calms down and people forget,” one viewer suggested. “Probably a couple of months.”
As Radar previously reported, Thornton was accused of accessing a chatroom designed for individuals attracted to minors while aboard a flight. After another passenger reported his alleged activity, airport police reportedly spoke with him and let him go without incident.
He was not charged with a crime or accused of illegal activity.
His attorney said in a statement: “My client did not engage in any illegal conduct, was not arrested, and has not been charged with any crime. When questioned about the complaint made by a fellow passenger on the flight, law enforcement spoke to him for five minutes or less, immediately determined that no wrongdoing had occurred and told my client he was free to go.”
The lawyer claimed Thornton was not attempting to engage in inappropriate behavior. Instead, he reportedly became concerned with suicide prevention after losing a loved one. He allegedly joined the chat mistakenly believing that was its purpose.
The chat room themselves seemingly defended Thornton while also clarifying their purpose. In a statement posted to the site, they admitted it was a “a support chat room for people attracted to children and adolescents.” However, they bar and remove any “illicit behavior, including the sharing of criminalized images.”
“It exists because most people attracted to minors are fully capable of behaving responsibly, yet extremely distressed by the stigmatization of their feelings,” the statement said. “They need a place to talk, ensuring better mental health, leading to more positive outcomes for themselves and their local communities.”