That was fast! In Ryan Seacrest’s second week as host of Wheel of Fortuneand here’s the thing: the last time this award was won during a regular season was exactly 10 years ago tomorrow.
The last time a non-celebrity player won $1 million was Sarah Manchester, whose win aired on September 17, 2014. On the September 16, 2024 episode, Vivian Tran, the red player, played for the top prize. She didn’t emerge a millionaire at the end of the episode, but the fact that she had the rare chance to win the show’s top prize so early in Seacrest’s run seems like a huge windfall for ratings.
A commercial for the Monday, Sept. 16 episode teased the $1 million prize being added to the bonus round. “Oh my God, this could be it. There it is,” Seacrest said in the commercial with an excited look on his face. In his hands, he held the $1 million envelope that replaces the $100,000 prize on the bonus round wheel when a player is eligible for the upgrade. The commercial confirmed that a player would get a chance to play for the prize, but of course did not reveal whether they walked away as the winner.
For Vivian to win the jackpot, several things had to go right. Wheel of Fortune Rules: To win $1 million, a contestant must spin the wheel and land on the “ONE MILLION” wedge, name a correct letter, and then solve that round’s puzzle without going bankrupt. They must then win the entire game without ever going bankrupt to advance to the bonus round, at which point the $100,000 envelope on the bonus wheel will be replaced with the $1 million envelope.
To win the top prize, Vivian would have had to land on the $1 million envelope on the bonus wheel and correctly solve the bonus round puzzle. Unfortunately, Vivian didn’t get to do that. But it’s the first time the show’s biggest jackpot has been put into play since Seacrest began hosting on Sept. 9.
Vivian went into the bonus round with a total of $27,300, a trip to Europe, the WILD card (which gave her an extra letter) and the ONE MILLION die. She had chosen “What Are You Doing?” “My heart is racing,” Seacrest said as Vivian played for the $1 million. “There’s a lot of money on that wheel tonight. Will she be the big winner?”
RSTLNE gave her _ _ _ ER_N_ S_ _E _EL_. She chose CHMI and P as bonus letters and gave her _ _ _ ERIN _ S_ME HELP. But she couldn’t get “OFFERING SOME HELP”.
Seacrest responded sympathetically when he showed her that she had found the $1 million envelope. “You were so close to the $1 million,” he told her. “You almost had it? Are you OK?” She confirmed that she was. “Breathe,” he told her, pointing out how much more she was going to take (including a trip). “You were so amazing. Thank you so much.” Then speaking to the camera, he noted, “I can’t believe it. When I picked it up, I thought, oh my God, that could be it. There it is, so close.”
Afterward, Vanna White and Seacrest continued to talk about how close it was; they knew it when Vivian landed on the wheel’s cover. “The adrenaline is just pumping through my body,” Seacrest added. “She was so close to making it with that wild card, that extra consonant. It was so close. I thought it could happen.”
This top prize was first introduced in September 2008 and has only been won four times. The first time was just a month after its introduction on October 14, 2008, when Michelle Loewenstein won big. The second win went to Autumn Erhard in May 2013 and the third to Manchester in 2014. Manchester is still the last person to win the jackpot in a regular season. The fourth winner is Sabrina – Totally Bewitched! Alumna Melissa Joan Hart, who won the jackpot on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune in an episode that aired on October 17, 2021.
Vivian is only the 13th player in Wheel of Fortune history to have a chance at the $1 million. Given that Sarah’s winning successes also aired on the 17th of a month, this seems to be the lucky number! How much should we read into the fact that this is the 13. Player who wanted to play for the $1 million, the unluckiest number ever, and her loss came just one day before the anniversary of the last big win? That might certainly fuel superstition, but then again, the top prize was won once before in 2013, so you could call it a coincidence.
Wheel of Fortune, Weekday evenings, check local offers
