‘Wheel of Fortune’: Ryan Seacrest Mistake Almost Costs Player $50,000 – Fans React

Ryan Seacrest is generally winning over Wheel of Fortune viewers with his energetic take on the game show. However, the relatively new host spun into huge backlash on Wednesday, December 18 after he seemingly failed to acknowledge a player’s correct bonus puzzle solve. Fans claimed she would have lost out on the $50,000 prize if she hadn’t repeated herself.

The messy moment involved Noel Ballacco, a Disney rollercoaster lover from Eastchester, New York. She proceeded to the coveted bonus round with $13,100 and the selection of “People” as her category. Faced with the two-word puzzle, she selected a “G” as her first additional letter and then an “L.” Despite this letter being part of “RSTLNE,” Seacrest said, “Okay.” This in itself a mistake, Ballancon corrected it herself, backtracking to choose an “M,” I,” and “C.” The puzzle read as, “GRE_T’ ‘_I_S.’”

The 10-second timer began, and Ballanco’s first guess was what sounded to many fans, and to Vanna White, like it was the correct answer “Great Kids.” The iconic letter turner burst into a grin and nodded. But the timer continued, Seacrest didn’t say anything and she wasn’t rewarded the puzzle.

In her second try, Ballanco more clearly said, “Great Kids?” White shrugged and seemingly looked at the host in confusion (below). The host finally ruled she was correct, “Yes! That’s it!”

The broadcast cut to show that Ballanco had won $50,000 from the golden envelope, and what made the round even more puzzling was Seacrest was never shown opening it, instead yelling “Yes, yes yes,” putting his hands over his mouth imitating the player.

On Reddit, a fan titled a post in the WoF forum, “12/18 bonus round.” They wrote, “Did anyone else catch she said the correct answer, but Ryan didn’t call it out as being correct at first. She had to say it a second time before it was acknowledged. I even back tracked my TV to make sure I heard it right the first time around.”

Other fans spun to the comments section, saying Seacrest “bleeped up” and were shocked by what they perceived as him not hearing the initial correct solve.

“Yes! Even Vanna nodded her head and said yes after the first time she said it,” one fan wrote.

“Yep! I was wondering what was going on,” wrote another.

“Ryan has to pick up his game. I heard it too. Almost had a controversy,” wrote a third.

“It’s the guys 1st season…how about giving him a little break?” argued a fourth.

To which a fifth wrote, “Agreed, he’s had some rough patches on some things I can understand that he might not get right, however this is fundamental day 1 basic stuff.

A sixth wrote, “Ryan bleeped up and they left it in for the world to see.”

And a seventh, “Good thing she repeated herself! Otherwise it would have been a mess.”

Over on X, fans also reacted to the bungled bonus round, one writinng, “She said, “Great kids” first thing? Come on Ryan, pay attention!”

“I know! The poor girl. She nailed it and he left her hanging,” wrote another.

“Glad she won but she said it the first time idk why it took the producers 2-3 times to confirm that was the answer glad she won but just saying,” wrote a third.

Related

‘Wheel of Fortune’: Ryan Seacrest has to Steady Himself After Insane Puzzle Solve

“First of all, Ryan didn’t tell her to pick another consonant because L was in the original lineup,” wrote a fourth. Then, he took forever to tell her that she got the puzzle right. Also why was Ryan so awkward after this win? What’s wrong with this guy???”

Meanwhile, Seacrest, of course, had big shoes to fill in the legendary Pat Sajak. His debut month was the strongest ratings month for WoF in the past three years, and he’s endeared fans with his contestant interviews, which he does without cue cards. That said, there have been some other questionable hosting moments.

In September, Seacrest had a similar “blooper” with a delayed bonus round reaction. Fans also blamed a lack of experience on Seacrest’s mishandling of a contestant’s $1million wedge, which she instantly forfeited. Last month, fans called out the host for not reminding a player to pick a letter, leading to him losing the game in a misunderstanding and by a mere $147. More recently, the host denied a player’s correct puzzle solve because she didn’t ring in first, despite being the only player left allowed to answer it. Earlier this week, fans blamed Seacrest for a player’s express round fail. No transition is letter-perfect!

Wheel of Fortune, Weeknights, Check your local listings