Viewers ‘couldn’t wait’ for Ken to ‘stop talking’ after he ‘went too far’ with an ‘annoying’ accent

JEOPARDY! host Ken Jennings has been mocked for using a ‘ridiculous’ accent during a nail-biting Tournament of Champions final.

The winner-turned-host is typically praised for his on-camera talents and for taking over Alex Trebek’s role so seamlessly however, his schtick on today’s tense game was slammed as “distracting.”

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Ken Jennings hosts Jeopardy! on Tuesday for the Tournament of ChampionsCredit: Jeopardy!

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Neilesh Vinjamuri takes a stern pause before a risky true Daily Double betCredit: Jeopardy!
On Tuesday’s episode, Ken, 50, continued to captain the Jeopardy! ship as the Tournament of Champions final three battle it out for the ultimate crown.

Season 41 power players Neilesh Vinjamuri, Isaac Hirsch and Adriana Harmeyer have made their way to the final trio.

Ken went on to introduce the categories in the first Jeopardy! round – but it was the Double Jeopardy! categories that left some viewers feeling uneasy.

The categories for the round include: BRIDGES // ACTORS & ACTRESSES // UNDER THE MICROSCOPE // AMERICAN GOVERNMENT // THEM’S FIGHTING WORDS.

However, the one that got fans talking most was: MEYER SCHUSSER, IRASCIBLE REFUGEE COMPOSER OF GOLDEN AGE HOLLYWOOD.

In order to play the part, Ken spoke with an unidentifiable accent when he delivered the Meyer Schusser clues.

The fun choice – which is a departure from the typically-serious game show – did not land well with many fans.

“Usually love Ken but I couldn’t wait for him to stop talking in the Shusser category,” one viewer said.

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From L-R: Adriana Harmeyer, Isaac Hirsch and Neilesh Vinjamuri play Jeopardy!Credit: Jeopardy!
“C’mon Ken! He usually doesn’t fall for annoying hosting tropes but damn he took that accent too far. Nails on a chalkboard to my ears,” another wrote.

“Ken putting on an accent was ridiculous,” a critic said bluntly.

“I’ll take ‘Ken please never do an accent again’ for 1000 please,” a fourth quipped.

Tuesday’s game marks another battle for Neilesh, Isaac and Adriana as they attempt to win the prestigious tournament.

Jeopardy! superchamp Adriana Harmeyer crushes opponents in brutal defeat as fans say she’s ‘big frontrunner’ to win ToC
Both Neilesh and Adriana have each snagged a win and the first to score three will be crowned the 2025 Tournament of Champions victor.

Neilesh made it clear he was not going to play it safe when he went all-in after finding the second Daily Double wagers.

The contestant, who has admitted in the past to being confident in the science categories, bet it all on a true Daily Double in “Under the Microscope.”

“Some mini cnidarians that can regenerate parts of their bodies have this mythic name, like a creature fought by Hercules,” Ken read as Neilesh bet over $14,000.

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“What is Hydra,” Neilesh responded – which was correct and doubled his score to $29,200.

Going into the final round, Neilesh was set up for a runaway win with $30,000 while Adriana was far behind in second with $14,000.

Isaac remained in third most of the game and went into the last round with just $1,600.

The only person to accurately answer Final Jeopardy! was Adriana – confirming that Neilesh’s massive Daily Double wager was the difference between him winning or losing today’s game.

Despite getting the answer wrong, it didn’t impact the score as Neilesh bet $0 – winning the game with $30,000.

Fans were impressed by his bold choice, with one saying: “You have to respect Neilesh Vinjamuri’s willingness to go all-in on Daily Doubles!”

“This is a perfect demonstration of why Neilesh’s all-ins on DD2 or DD3 are strategically the right move for him in the finals: he’s much better at DDs (91% correct, wowza) than FJs (41%), and he’s much worse at FJs than his two opponents (Adriana 76%, Isaac 70%) so his best chance at winning is putting the game out of reach before FJ.

“If he’d wagered ‘only’ 10,000-12,000 on DD2–still a huge amount–that wouldn’t have been enough for the runaway, and Adriana would have caught him with her correct response on FJ. Great game,” another viewer pointed out.

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Ken interviews contestants during today’s gameCredit: Jeopardy!

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Adriana Harmeyer is a frontrunner to win the whole tournamentCredit: Jeopardy!