‘Figure It Out’ Turns 25: Where Are the Hosts & Panelists Now?
If the name “Billy the Answer Head” means anything to you, then perhaps you were watching Nickelodeon on July 7, 1997, when the long-running game show Figure It Out debuted.
In the original version of the show, celebrity panelists would have to deduce a kid contestant’s secret talent or claim to fame, with the answer hidden on the head-shaped game board dubbed Billy. (Of course, if the panelists committed the “Secret Slime Action” faux pax, they’d be drenched in the neon-green ooze that flowed so freely on ’90s-era Nickelodeon!)
Nickelodeon/Courtesy: Everett Collection
Olympic swimmer Summer Sanders hosted the 1997 version of Figure It Out, with Nick faves Lori Beth Denberg, Danny Tamberelli, Kevin Kopelow, Christy Knowings, and Amanda Bynes regularly holding court on the panel. And when Nickelodeon revived the show in 2012, Jeff Sutphen emceed the updated Figure It Out, with Ciara Bravo and Matt Bennett frequently serving as panelists. Now that we’ve reached Figure It Out’s 25th anniversary, keep reading to uncover updates on all nine of those stars.
Summer Sanders
Sanders, who hosted the 1997–99 iteration of the show after becoming an Olympic swimming champion in 1992, is now a co-host of CBS Sports Network’s We Need to Talk, the first all-women sports show.
Jeff Sutphen
Sutphen, who hosted the 2012–13 version of Figure It Out after hosting ABC’s 101 Ways to Leave a Game Show, has recently been working as an executive producer on the YouTube series Ryan’s Mystery Playdate.
Lori Beth Denberg
Denberg returned to her All That roots after Nickelodeon revived the sketch-comedy show, appearing in four episodes of the new All That between 2019 and 2020. These days, she’s the host of the podcast Bad Advice with Lori Beth Denberg and a professional wedding officiant.
Danny Tamberelli
Tamberelli, another All That alum, reunited with Denberg on screen in the 2018 drama film Ham on Rye. And he and Michael Maronna, his costar from Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete, host a podcast titled The Adventures of Danny and Mike.
Kevin Kopelow
Kopelow and writing partner Heath Seifert are the creators of the Disney Channel series Austin & Ally and the Nickelodeon series Cousins for Life. Their latest Nickelodeon comedy, Warped!, debuted on Nick last January.
Christy Knowings
Knowings last acted onscreen in a 2011 episode of Sesame Street and has since segued into music. In 2020, for example, she released the track “To the World,” which she called a “hauntingly gritty single.” And last March, Knowings tweeted that she’d be attending Bynes’ conservatorship hearing along with their fellow All That alum Leon Frierson.
Amanda Bynes
Amid struggles in her personal life, Bynes hasn’t acted on screen since the 2010 rom-com film Easy A. A judge lifted Bynes’ eight-year conservatorship in March 2022, however, and her attorney told Entertainment Tonight that the former What I Like About You star had fielded offers about documentaries or a reality show about her life.
Ciara Bravo
Bravo, an alum of Nickelodeon’s Big Time Rush, starred as Delilah “Del” Luccetti in the Prime Video comedy series Wayne in 2019 and recurred as Mary Smith in the FX on Hulu drama A Teacher the following year. In 2021, she starred opposite Tom Holland in the Apple TV+ drama film Cherry and appeared in the independent drama film Small Engine Repair.
Matt Bennett
Bennett’s most recent two TV roles were both on Netflix: He recurred as Gavin Landers in the mockumentary American Vandal in 2018 and guest-starred as a henchman in the live-action Cowboy Bebop reboot last year. He also reunited with Ariana Grande, his old costar from Nickelodeon’s Victorious, in her 2018 music video for “Thank U, Next.”
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services