Overview
- Sony Pictures Television said Sept. 4 that it had completed an internal inquiry and terminated Jim Thornton’s employment with Wheel of Fortune effective immediately.
- The decision follows passenger-supplied photos from a May 14 American Airlines flight that TMZ published showing Thornton’s laptop on a chat forum; those images and their timestamps have not been independently authenticated.
- Los Angeles airport police questioned Thornton when the flight landed but did not arrest or charge him, and his attorney says he was briefly questioned and released with no criminal finding.
- Thornton’s lawyer says he does suicide-prevention advocacy and was misdirected to a site called lifeline.chat, which he left when he realized its nature; the attorney also denies any illegal conduct or viewing of child sexual abuse material.
- Producers have already re-voiced Thornton’s parts with an interim announcer for the Season 44 premiere on Sept. 14, illustrating how studio personnel decisions can cause immediate editing, scheduling and reputational consequences even without criminal charges.