Even ABC is taken aback by Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time's massive viewership: Will there be copycats?

Vulture

Thursday's Night 3 of the special Jeopardy! tournament attracted 15.4 million viewers. That's a bigger audience than any game of last year's World Series and NBA Finals. Don't be surprised if ABC tries to duplicate Jeopardy!'s primetime success with other game shows, says Josef Adalian. "Generating the sort of numbers ABC is getting with GOAT will likely prove difficult, however," says Adalian. "As noted, Jeopardy! already boasts a huge, loyal daily fan base as well as a history of championship tournaments. What Sony and ABC have done with GOAT is to activate an army of viewers who were just waiting for such an event, while also capitalizing on the buzz surrounding Holzhauer. Trebek is also a beloved host, a fact underscored by the outpouring of fan support following his recent cancer diagnosis. A prime-time edition of, say, Wheel of Fortune could do well, but it’s hard to see it getting the same audience response as GOAT. Similarly, while NBC would probably be smart to dust off one of its past game-show hits (maybe a new take on The Weakest Link or a reboot of 21), there’s little chance such efforts would be met with blockbuster ratings. But as ABC has proven with its Summer Fun & Games shows, you don’t need massive Nielsen numbers to make game shows work in prime time."

ALSO:

• ABC reality boss Robert Mills admits he's trying to figure out how to tap in Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time's success: "Whether it’s something with Jeopardy! or not, certainly I would argue these three guys are the biggest stars in primetime right now," he says. "Is there a different game? I don’t know. But you can’t look at this and not acknowledge the impact that they have had over the 20 years and this past week without saying, 'OK. how do we tap into it.'"
• Brad Rutter's all-time Jeopardy! winnings record is not in jeopardy because the Greatest of All Time winner will take home just $1 million
• Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time has been as good as a sporting event
• Jeopardy! criticized for judging Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity as part of Israel, not Palestine