Mayim Bialik Jeopardy Under Fire For Controversial Clue
Mayim Bialik and Jeopardy! have come under fire for a question that some took to be making light of the Gabby Petito murder case.
This article is more than 2 years old
Mayim Bialik and Celebrity Jeopardy are both under fire this week, with fans decrying what they say is an incredibly tone-deaf and an out-of-line question regarding the now-infamous case of Gabby Petito’s murder, according to the New York Post. Though it wouldn’t be the first controversy Jeopardy has had since the death of longtime host Alex Trebek, it probably won’t be the last either.
The question was under a category called “The ‘A’ List” which somehow makes it even worse. While all the answers to the questions began with the letter A, it was the clue that shocked fans. The question came early on in the board, getting chosen almost instantaneously by one of the contestants. As Mayim Bialik read the answer in typical Jeopardy fashion, fans and audience members alike had to check their ears and see if they heard that right.
The clue in question was “In 2021, fugitive Brian Laundries ended his days in Fla’s Myakkahatchee Creek area, home to these long and toothy critters”. The answer was quickly guessed by an uncomfortable-looking Joel David Kim, with “What are Alligators?” While Mayim Bialik didn’t comment or seemingly lose a step, the Jeopardy game continued as if it was just another throwaway trivia fact, quite the opposite from how the family and friends of Gabby Petito feel.
Petito’s case grabbed headlines in late 2021 after the 22-year-old Instagram influencer disappeared while on a cross-country road trip with her boyfriend, Brian Laundries. While full details are still hazy due to Laundrie’s death in the aforementioned swamp, there was a written confession in his notebook that was found near the same area. Mayim Bialik, meanwhile, has yet to find anyone that thought the Jeopardy question was a good idea.
Such a fuss all for the word ‘alligator’? The Jeopardy writers seem to be fishing for controversy, putting edgy questions and clues to try and get a rise out of anyone listening. It’s baffling why Mayim Bialik would read the clue out loud, much less that it got past network lawyers and Jeopardy’s trivia experts.
Could anything different have been used for the clue? There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind. Alligators are not something that people are unaware of. From the Florida Gators football team to the inconsistently sized reptiles of the film Crawl, alligators aren’t just some foreign, wild animal that most Americans don’t know! If Mayim Bialik or Jeopardy (or big idea, both) had any kind of sensitivity for the victim and her family, they might have found another way to describe the creature, or even a whole new creature entirely.
Mayim Bialik and Jeopardy have not reached out for comment at this time. The family of Gabby Petito, sure enough being made to relive their pain at her loss due to one thoughtless question on a trivia show, have also not commented. A faint rolling sound can be heard from Alex Trebek’s resting place.
