Ryan Seacrest may be new to the game, but he already knows when a player is about to make a big mistake… and he’s not afraid to help them avoid it, either.
On Tuesday’s (September 17) edition of Wheel of Fortune the nascent host was helpful to all of the three contestants for the evening — Clayton, Erica, and Jess — in that he would dutifully remind them to be very, very careful in how they pronounced their solves. But his guidance was particularly rewarding when heeded by Clayton.
In the evening’s prize puzzle, when Clayton trailed Jess by thousands, he landed on the Express $1,000 tile and decided to “ride the train” or keep guessing for $1,000 a letter until he could solve it or lose it all.
The clue, in the event category, ultimately spelled out, “Traditional Tea Ceremony,” which became increasingly obvious with every non-money-making vowel the contestant put on the board. When the vowels ran out, though, and there were just a few consonants remaining, and Clayton declared, I’ll solve it.”
To that, Seacrest quickly but forcefully objected, saying, “Are you sure you don’t want more cash? Hurry!” It took a beat, but Clayton then caught on and added two more letters to his tally, almost doubling his total and bolstering his chances of going to the bonus round, which he did.
As the round cut to a commercial break, Seacrest approached Clayton and explained, “Man, I just wanted to make sure you got as much as you could,” to which Clayton could do nothing but shrug about his lack of awareness and quick decision-making.
NBC
Clayton would go on to lose the potential $40,000 prize in the bonus round (guessing exactly zero additional letters beyond the RSTLNE, which did not help him at all). But he still won a trip to Japan and $27,548 out of the deal, so all in all, a successful game. And Clayton seriously has Seacrest to thank for adding a couple of thousand bucks to his take-home pay for the day!
On Twitter, one fan poked fun at the exchange while another suggested they were getting Edd Byrnes vibes from that moment.
You sure you want more cash? #WheelOfFortune #RyanSeacrest
— PiplupJamesBattle (@PiplupJames) September 17, 2024
Definitely an Edd Byrnes vibe there.
— VicGChad07 (@VIGOCHAofficial) September 17, 2024
Wheel of Fortune, weeknights, check local listings
:quality(85):upscale()/2025/05/19/981/n/1922564/93076eb0682bb18c994e06.89379902_.png "What to Wear to Lady Gaga’s Mayhem Ball Tour"){kind=small}
:quality(85):upscale()/2025/05/23/715/n/1922564/1e63d6e168309df259d956.72331408_.png "21 Best Memorial Day Clothing Sales 2025"){kind=small}
