‘Celebrity Jeopardy!’ Big News Update: More Contestants & Matchups Announced

Martin Holmes September 22, 2023, 8:56 am

Sheryl Underwood, Brian Baumgartner, and Melissa Fumero — JC Olivera/Getty Images; Rachel Murray for CMPB/Getty Images; Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for The American Heart Association

A new group of celebrities are gearing up to take on Celebrity Jeopardy! when it returns on Wednesday, September 27, and we now know more famous faces who are taking part, as well as some of the first-round match-ups.

The new names joining the line-up include The Office alum Brian Baumgartner, CSI: Miami actor Adam Rodriguez, former NBA star Shane Battier, The Talk co-host Sheryl Underwood, Brooklyn Nine-Nine‘s Melissa Fumero, sportscaster Peter Schrager, and Nurse Jackie alum Peter Facinelli.

They will join the previously announced Christopher Meloni, Lisa Ann Walter, Mark Duplass, Sherri Shepherd, Dulé Hill, Mira Sorvino, Timothy Simons, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Steven Weber, Emily Hampshire, and Katie Nolan.

Fans on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum seemed excited about the new names, with one commenter joking, “It’s unfair to force all these regular people to compete against Amy Santiago,” referencing Fumero’s character on the sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

“Can you imagine her binder to prepare for Jeopardy? Volumes,” added another user.

Another viewer predicted that former Miami Heat star Battier could be the season’s “dark horse” to win it all.

“Shane Battier is my dark horse to go far in this tournament. I may be biased as I am a basketball fan, but the guy was not only a high basketball IQ player, but also a smart dude off the court,” the commenter wrote. “Duke graduate with a major in religion, bilingual, and quite active in business ventures after retirement.”

“Only question is can he go from being an all-time NBA defender, to a more offensive approach in Jeopardy (i.e. his buzzer skills)?” they added.

Another Reddit user who claimed to have attended one of the tapings shared, “We saw Dule Hill, Sheryl Underwood and Peter Facinelli tape. They were absolutely hilarious, I felt like I was watching a Saturday Night Live jeopardy sketch. I assume much of it will end up in the cutting room floor, but still can’t wait to see.”

This new crop of celebs will be hoping to follow the success of Ike Barinholtz, who walked away as Celebrity Jeopardy! champion in Season 1.

The official Jeopardy! website has revealed the first three match-ups, which will see Mark Duplass, Emily Hampshire and Utkarsh Ambudkar battling it out on September 27, followed by Brian Baumgartner, Lisa Ann Walter and Timothy Simons on October 4, and Christopher Meloni, Sherri Shepherd and Katie Nolan on October 11.

Jeopardy, Inc

Jeopardy, Inc

Jeopardy, Inc

There are scheduled to be nine quarterfinal games followed by three semi-finals and then the finals. While the official dates haven’t yet been announced for the episodes beyond the October 11 episode, the series is expected to run into December. The overall winner will receive a million bucks towards a charity of their choice.