Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

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TenPoundHammer

Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by TenPoundHammer »

I've noticed that nearly every other major game show of American origin tends to spawn multiple international versions. There are still international versions of Wheel of Fortune to this day, and Blockbusters was a far bigger hit in the UK than stateside, to name just two examples.

But when it comes to Jeopardy!, foreign versions seem a lot fewer in number and a lot less successful. What is the reason for that?
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by Ironhorse »

I would wager to say that Alex Trebek's personality had an outsized role in the show's success.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by opusthepenguin »

Ironhorse wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 3:49 pm I would wager to say that Alex Trebek's personality had an outsized role in the show's success.
That's probably true, but why has the personality of the host made such a difference in Jeopardy! and not in other shows? I would've predicted that Jeopardy! is the least host-dependent of our major domestic game shows.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by LucarioSnooperVixey »

Because of "The Chase".
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by mas3cf »

All the clues are in foreign languages, which makes them WAY harder.
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alietr
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by alietr »

mas3cf wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 4:37 pm All the clues are in foreign languages, which makes them WAY harder.
Nicely done!
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DBear
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries? seriously.

Post by DBear »

Because other countries don't "get" the answer-in-the-form-of-a-question format. UK especially, they think it absolutely silly & don't take J! seriously. 🤡
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries? seriously.

Post by yclept »

DBear wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 5:10 pm Because other countries don't "get" the answer-in-the-form-of-a-question format. UK especially, they think it absolutely silly & don't take J! seriously. 🤡
If this is true, they could simply change that part of the show and essentially have the same exact show. Just make all the clues questions.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by Golf »

It’s the universal polar opposite of soccer.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by Leander »

I’m pretty sure there are/have been a number of trivia quiz shows in the UK over the years and probably they don’t see the need to import another format. After all, Who Wants To Be a Millionaire started there. Other countries I couldn’t comment about.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by Robert K S »

The flip side of this coin is, why has it been so successful here, and will it continue to be successful in the future?...
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries?

Post by Volante »

Robert K S wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 8:07 pm The flip side of this coin is, why has it been so successful here, and will it continue to be successful in the future?...
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries? seriously.

Post by triviawayne »

yclept wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 5:26 pm
DBear wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 5:10 pm Because other countries don't "get" the answer-in-the-form-of-a-question format. UK especially, they think it absolutely silly & don't take J! seriously. 🤡
If this is true, they could simply change that part of the show and essentially have the same exact show. Just make all the clues questions.
then it wouldn't be Jeopardy, they could name it something else, and not deal with any licensing issues.

Which brings me to licensing, it could be the cost and what is required to produce J in other countries makes it not something production companies in those countries are willing to do. Might be best to have a list of what other countries have had it, where it has succeeded, and where it has failed.
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Re: Why is "Jeopardy!" unsuccessful in other countries? seriously.

Post by Caboom »

triviawayne wrote: Fri Oct 15, 2021 7:42 am Might be best to have a list of what other countries have had it, where it has succeeded, and where it has failed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeopardy! ... l_versions
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