NEED TO KNOW
- Jeopardy! fans shared their reaction to a “confusing” James Bond-related question during the show’s July 7 episode
- “I assumed they were asking about the last 2 Best Song winners: 2024 and 2025. The strength of the comma!” one fan commented
- Last month, the game show also sparked outcry over a contestant’s familial connection to a clue
Fans called out Jeopardy! over its “confusing” 007 clue.
On the July 7 episode of long-running quiz game show, host Ken Jennings read the James Bond clue during the final round, telling the contestants, “The last 2 best song Oscar winners whose titles were the same name as the movie they were in had this man in the leading role.”
First up, contestant Ashley Caval Curto was first to reveal her answer of Timothée Chalamet, which was incorrect. Another contestant, Vince Carter, wrote down “Who is Daniel Craig,” which Jennings confirmed was correct.
The show’s returning champion, Scott Riccardi, also gave the correct answer, which allowed him to keep score his third win.
Jeopardy/Youtube
Of course, James Bond fans will recall that songs were “Skyfall” in 2012 and “No Time to Die” in 2021, which matched the blockbuster film’s titles.
Adele won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Skyfall” in 2013 while took home the same trophy for “No Time to Die” in 2022.
However, fans were upset by the wording of the question and shared their dismay on social media.
“A very confusing clue. It took me more than the ‘think music’ time to even figure out what it said,” one fan shared on X. “I finally realized it wanted the name of the actor. Good thing there’s a pause button! (I still didn’t know the answer, though).”
Other fans shared their confusion in the comment section on the show’s YouTube page, one viewer wrote, “They’re looking for Craig as the correct response, but I wonder if they would have accepted Bond as an answer. When the clue says leading role, it doesn’t specify if they are asking for actor or character…”
Jeopardy/Youtube
Another user called the clue “poorly phrased,” adding, “I assumed they were asking about the last 2 Best Song winners: 2024 and 2025. The strength of the comma!”
Last month, Jeopardy! left fans divided after Emily Croke answered correctly and became the champion — partially because the clue referred to an ancestor of hers — on the June 23 episode.
“In 1896, the Vassar-educated wife of this man wrote, ‘Thousands of dollars may be paid for a copy of Shakespeare,’” the clue read.
Croke wrote down “Folger,” which was the correct answer. When asked about her answer, Croke noted that the woman referred to in the clue Jennings gave had been her “great, great, great-aunt Emily.”
Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images
Several people on social media noted how serendipitous it was that she was the contestant that received the clue. One fan shared that the incident was “the most amazing coincidence in the history of Jeopardy!”
However, other users felt that the woman’s connection to the final clue gave her an unfair advantage over her other contestants. One said that the contest was “rigged,” while another said it was “not fair” and that she should be “disqualified.”
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Jeopardy! airs weeknights on ABC (check local listings).