Why 'Jeopardy!' Fans Are Still Talking About Ken Jennings’ "Painful" Joke

Selena Barrientos
·2 min read
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Ken Jennings is officially back to hosting Jeopardy! and his highly anticipated return was met with virtual applause. While the former Chase star quickly fell back into step after being away from the quiz show for several months, he also didn’t waste time cracking one of his jokes. But this time it was more than just punny.

During Monday night’s episode, Jeopardy! contestants were going back-and-forth trying to make it a runaway game. In the midst of the fast-paced rounds, the Double Jeopardy! category “Active Bible Verses” offered some unexpected humor when a clue read: “Since no one had done this for 40 years, God told Joshua to get a knife and do this to male Israelites.”

Though contestant William Chou was the first to buzz in, he ran out of time and Erica Weiner-Amanchi swooped in. “What is circumcise?” she said. Without hesitation, Ken confirmed she was right ... in the most unexpected way.

“That is correct. A painful $2,000 for you,” he said.

Despite the Jeopardy! host and contestants moving on from the joke, fans watching from home immediately took to social media to converse about the moment for much longer.

Although it caught viewers off guard, lots of them couldn’t hold back their chuckles. "Gotta laugh at Ken Jennings' quick quip,” one person wrote. “That’s hilarious 😂😂😂,” another added.

What’s more, many took the opportunity to call for the trivia show to name him the new face of the series. “Love Ken Jennings and his jokes! A strong Welcome back. Make him permanent already!!!” a different fan said. "I don't see where the joke is crude at all. It's extremely accurate and funny! Make Ken the permanent host already!" a follower commented.

This isn’t the first time Ken has been singled out for a remark he has said on Jeopardy!. Back in November, he used a bit of word play to tell a dad joke. In that instance, the Jeopardy! champion issued a mass apology to fans but it doesn’t look like he plans on doing that again.

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