Saturday, September 13, 2025

'Jeopardy!' and Jimmy Kimmel win Game Show categories at the Emmy Awards


I'm getting an early start on the Sunday entertainment feature by covering some of the winners of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sunday. Today, I'm revisiting 'Jeopardy!' favored to win Game Show categories at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
Outstanding Game Show
  • Celebrity Family Feud (ABC)
  • Jeopardy! (ABC / Syndicated)
  • The Price is Right (CBS)
  • Wheel of Fortune (ABC / Syndicated)
  • Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC)
Strictly speaking, Celebrity Family Feud, Jeopardy!, and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire tie for first with two nominations each. However, as the publicity image from Twitter/X in the upper right corner above shows, Jeopardy! claims a third nomination for Pop Culture Jeopardy! I'll agree and use it as a tiebreaker. Gold Derby's assessment matches my handicapping from total nominations, with all experts, 85.7% of editors, and 91.7% of users expecting the winner to be Jeopardy! It's the two-time defending winner, so that's a reasonable expectation. Celebrity Family Feud has the support of 14.3% of editors and 4.5% of users. Thanks to 1.9% of the users, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire sits in third. The long-shot picks of The Price is Right and Wheel of Fortune are the choices of 0.9% of users each.
Gold Derby called it — Jeopardy! won. Congratulations!
Outstanding Host for a Game Show
  • Elizabeth Banks – Press Your Luck (ABC)
  • Steve Harvey – Celebrity Family Feud (ABC)
  • Ken Jennings – Jeopardy! (ABC / Syndicated)
  • Colin Jost – Pop Culture Jeopardy! (Prime Video)
  • Jimmy Kimmel – Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC)
Despite winning the program category both times since game shows were transferred from the Daytime Emmy Awards to the Primetime Emmy Award, the hosts of Jeopardy! have never won Outstanding Host for a Game Show. The prognosticators at Gold Derby think that jinxed streak will be broken, as every expert and editor along with 77.2% of users predict that Ken Jennings will earn his first Emmy Award. Steve Harvey, the last winner of this category at the Daytime Emmys, sits in second with the support of 11.5% of users. Colin Jost, Elizabeth Banks, and Jimmy Kimmel are the choices of 4.9%, 3.6%, and 2.7% of users, respectively.
Gold Derby's odds changed since August, with 10% of experts and 16.7% of editors moving from Jennings to Kimmel. Along with 2.9% of users, that was enough to move Kimmel to fourth in the odds, although I would have interpreted these numbers as placing him second — I think Gold Derby emphasizes the users too much over the professionals. Another 16.7% of editors shifted from Jennings to Banks, leaving Jennings with the votes of 90% of experts, 66.7% of editors, and 85.0% of users. At least some of the professionals saw Kimmel's win coming, even if the users consolidated around Jennings.

I'll try to explain what happened after I feature two videos of Kimmel accepting his award and greeting the entertainment press, beginning with Jimmy Kimmel, Outstanding Host for a Game Show for Who Wants To Be A Millionaire from the Television Academy.


 Gold Derby shared his post-award remarks in Jimmy Kimmel honors Regis Philbin after winning Emmy for 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire'.

Jimmy Kimmel honors Regis Philbin after winning at the 2025 Creative Arts Emmys for hosting "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire."
Kimmel mentioning winning his first Emmy for Win Ben Stein's Money was almost a surprise for me — almost, because I checked his Wikipedia entry to see if this was his first Emmy Award. No, it's his fourth. The other two were for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) in 2019 and 2020 with Norman Lear. After watching his lie-down strike on stage in 2022, I would have thought he didn't have any. At least it may have convinced the Television Academy to move Last Week Tonight out of Outstanding Talk Series.

Speaking of Outstanding Talk Series, what Kimmel did to influence voting there may have helped him here.


Time to revisit Colbert, Lydic, and Meyers take closer looks at the EPA and Epstein and Kimmel goes down the rabbit hole on 'windmills'.
Gold Derby agrees on the most likely winner, but flips the odds of the other two. 83.3% of experts, 33.3% of editors, and 68.6% of users predict The Daily Show will repeat. On the other hand, 66.6% of editors, 16.7% of experts, and 27.6% of users expect The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to upset. I suspect the editors believe CBS canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will drive a sympathy vote. They might just be right. Only 3.8% of users have cast long shot votes for Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Gold Derby thinks Kimmel's campaign may have helped drive the sympathy vote, as every editor, 94.1% of experts, and 94.8% of users are now voting for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Just 5.9% of experts and 4.5% of users still think The Daily Show will repeat. Meanwhile, 0.7% of users are still supporting Jimmy Kimmel Live! Give it up. Jimmy's already won his Emmy for the year.

I close with a video I wish I found in 2023, "Weird Al" Yankovic - I Lost On Jeopardy.


 That's a wrap for today. Stay tuned for more entertainment coverage tomorrow.

Previous posts about the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards
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