‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ Contestant Wins $1 Million Jackpot
Ike Barinholtz has extended his game show winning streak on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. The Mindy Project alum hit the $1 million jackpot on Wednesday. He and his dad answered all 15 questions right to score the seven-figure sum for charity. Here’s what the actors had to say about the big win.
Ike Barinholtz Won $1 Million On Another Game Show Last Year
Game show fans might remember seeing Ike Barinholtz on Celebrity Jeopardy! in 2023. He muscled out Wil Wheaton and Patton Oswalt during the inaugural season of the competition, earning another $1 million for charity. At the time, Ike donated his winnings to Hollygrove, which is a city outside of New Orleans.
Earlier this year, he returned to Jeopardy! to compete in the Tournament of Champions. He was the only celebrity to do so and made it to the semi-finals before his winning streak came to an end.
However, on last night’s episode of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Ike’s luck picked back up again. Alongside his dad, Jury Duty star Alan Barinholtz, he scored yet another $1 million win for charity.
“The way Millionaire builds to harder questions, the tension you’re feeling from questions 12 through 15 is greater than any pressure you’re feeling on Jeopardy!,” Ike noted the differences between Jeopardy! and Millionaire. “And you have [host] Jimmy [Kimmel]… smirking at you a little bit. You just don’t want to go home.”
His win marks the first jackpot hit in the 25th season of the game show. It is also the first joint victory in the history of Millionaire.
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Redemption
Ike spoke to USA Today after his big win. He joked, “Had there been confetti in the hospital room, I would have given the birth of my children as the hard No. 1 significant event in my life. But with the confetti, this just felt bigger than anything I had ever been a part of.”
The father-son duo donated that $1 million to The American Sign Language program at Los Encinos School.
This wasn’t Ike’s first rodeo on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire either. He first appeared on the game show in 2020. The Mindy Project star admitted that he “choked” on a $250,000 answer. His return was, in part, to redeem himself.
Ike Barinholtz’s dad felt the same way. “I was Ike’s Lifeline on that episode. So I semi-blew it too, and I wanted to redeem myself,” Alan said. “But I still thought if we could crack $125,000 this time, that would still be golden.”
The Jury Duty star prepared for his appearance on the game show by watching hours of old episodes of Millionaire with former host Regis Philbin. Ultimately, it paid off and the pair scored big for charity.
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire airs on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.
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