Ben Affleck Wins Million-Dollar Prize

Hollywood actor Ben Affleck has secured the million-dollar jackpot on the US edition of the game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?. The 53-year-old actor competed alongside Jamie Ding, a champion from the quiz show Jeopardy!. The entire prize sum has been designated for Affleck's charitable organisation, the Eastern Congo Initiative.

Affleck explained at the start of the episode that the Eastern Congo Initiative supports community-based organisations in the African region. He described the area as having been 'severely impacted by a very traumatic war'.

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Navigating the Questions

Following their appearance on a previous episode, Affleck and Ding faced two further questions to reach the million-dollar prize. The question for $500,000 asked: 'What achievement occurred just two months after a New York Times article said it wouldn’t happen for one million to 10 million years?'. The options provided were splitting the atom, cloning a mammal, the first aeroplane flight, or the polio vaccine.

Ding identified the correct answer as the first aeroplane flight, an answer Affleck agreed with. Affleck commented that he recalled this because it was a period when he researched examples of the press being incorrect. He vaguely remembered The Times and the Wright brothers, suggesting the event was around 1903 to 1904. Ding corrected him, stating '03, prompting host Jimmy Kimmel to joke about Affleck's intelligence compared to his friend Matt Damon, who also won a million dollars on the show.

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The pair used their 50:50 lifeline, which removed two incorrect answers, leaving 'splitting the atom' and 'the first aeroplane flight' as the remaining choices. They correctly selected the latter, advancing to the final question.

The Million-Dollar Question

The ultimate question for the million-dollar prize was: 'In an annual Thanksgiving tradition, all but which of these have been the names of turkeys pardoned by a US president?'. The choices were Peanut Butter & Jelly, Tater & Tot, Mac & Cheese, and Spaghetti & Meatball.

Affleck and Ding utilised the 'Ask-the-Host' lifeline, with Kimmel suggesting 'Spaghetti & Meatball'. For their final lifeline, they attempted to 'Phone-A-Friend', calling one of Ding's friends, but the call was not answered in time. Relying on Kimmel's advice, they chose 'Spaghetti & Meatball' and successfully won the million dollars. They were then presented with a large cheque for the foundation.

Other notable contestants on this season of the game show have included Jesse Eisenberg, Michael Keaton, Awkwafina, Leslie Odom Jr, and Colin Jost. Previous celebrity pairs to win the million-dollar prize include Ike and Alan Barinholtz in 2024, and Oscar Nunez and Kate Flannery in 2025.