Amy Schneider, an engineering manager from California, won her 28th win on the long-running game show, becoming the fourth million-dollar champion.
Amy Schneider is the fourth contestant in 'Jeopardy!' history to pass $1 million in regular-season winnings.
The company that produces the game show, Jeopardy, Inc.
Schneider won $42,200 in Friday's game, bringing her winnings to over $1 million.
Schneider has won more games than any other contender, and has raked in more cash from regular-season play than Ken and James.
Schneider is the show's longest-running and top-earning female contestant, and she is the first trans competitor to qualify for the show's annual Tournament of Champs.
Schneider said in a Friday statement from Sony Pictures Entertainment that the amount of money associated with his name was not what he anticipated.
What to watch for.
Schneider could make more money if she returns to play in the tournaments. Some competitors have made small fortunes. Brad Rutter has made over five million dollars from tournament and standard games, but his regular-season earnings didn't top $1 million, so he won a total of $4.37 million from the show.
The key background.
Schneider told the New York Times that her eighth-grade class voted her the most likely to appear on the game show. She attributed her success on the show to a childhood interest in knowledge, her parents' obsession with encyclopedias and her girlfriend's knowledge of pop-culture. She wrote in a piece for Defector that her brain retains knowledge, her reflexes on the buzzer are quick, and she focuses on the clues to decipher their often-opaque meaning.
Surprising fact.
Schneider lost her phone and credit cards after being robbed in Oakland on Sunday. The Oakland Police Department is investigating an armed robbery that took place on Sunday afternoon, and no arrests have been made. This week's game was likely unaffected by the robbery, as episodes of Jeopardy! are typically taped months in advance.
A turbulent year has been faced by the game show. The death of long-time host Alex Trebek in November 2020 led to the show's producers giving out guest-hosting spots to more than a dozen celebrities and television personalities in 2021. Mike Richards, the show's former executive producer, stepped down as permanent host after The Ringer unearthed offensive comments he made on a years-old podcast. Mayim Bialik, who was hired by Sony to host a special on the game show last year, has traded off interim hosting duties this season. The show averaged nearly 8.7 million viewers in the second-to-last week of December, beating out other game shows like Family Feud and Wheel of Fortune.
Amy Schneider helped the show find calm after chaos.
What is behind the winning streaks on 'Jeopardy!'? This season? The ringer
How did I get smart?
