Who Wants to Be a Millionaire arrived on American television as something the country had never quite seen before — a game show with the drama of a thriller, a million-dollar top prize, and a host who made every question feel like a life-or-death moment. It premiered on ABC in 1999, hosted by Regis Philbin, and was airing five nights a week at the height of its popularity. The primetime version ran until 2002, before being cancelled due to overexposure. A daily syndicated version launched later in 2002 and ran until 2019. The show has since returned to ABC in celebrity format.
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire is built around one simple goal: answer 15 (14 in the current format) increasingly difficult multiple-choice questions correctly and walk away with $1 million. Contestants can use lifelines along the way, including “Phone a Friend,” “50:50,” “Ask the Audience” (original run), and “Ask the Host,” which replaced “Ask the Audience” in the current format. The tension is amplified by the host’s now-legendary prompt: “Is that your final answer?” — a catchphrase so embedded in popular culture it was included on TV Land’s list of the 100 Greatest TV Quotes and Catch Phrases.
The show has gone through significant format changes over its 25-year run. The syndicated version introduced a clock format in 2008, giving contestants a time limit to answer each question. The current ABC revival features a celebrity-pairs format — two celebrities competing together for charity. The top prize in the current version remains $1 million, donated to the winning celebrity’s chosen charity.
The show has had six hosts across its various incarnations — Regis Philbin, Meredith Vieira, Cedric the Entertainer, Terry Crews, Chris Harrison, and Jimmy Kimmel, who has hosted the ABC celebrity revival since 2020.
