Wheel of Fortune contestant’s embarrassing wrong answer on simple puzzle costs her $1,000,000

Imagine being so close to winning $1,000,000 and watching it all wither away in the blink of an eye.

So goes the fate of one Wheel of Fortune contestant on a recent episode of the show's new season.

The incredibly popular game show, which has been running for almost a whopping 50 years, sees contestants trying to solve word puzzles in exchange for cash and prizes determined by spinning a giant carnival-like wheel.

The new season is hosted by Ryan Seacrest who replaced long-time host Pat Sajak a few weeks after his retirement.

And while it's only been Seacrest's second week of hosting the show, the new season of Wheel of Fortune already has a facepalm moment quite literally worth a million bucks.

You see, contestant Vivian Tran lost out on $1,000,000 for only missing one word - just one - in a puzzle.

"My heart is racing, this is a first for me," Seacrest said before Tran spun the wheel in a bonus round. "You're playing for a $1 million."

He went on to explain that the show replaced its $100,000 envelope with a $1,000,000 envelope.

The puzzle was almost solved (YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

After spinning the wheel, the puzzle category was revealed to be 'What Are You Doing?' and Tran chose the letters C, H, M, I, and P. She also received a wild card for an extra letter.

Wheel of Fortune co-host Vanna White then revealed the correct letters on the board, with the puzzle now reading '_ _ _ E R I N G, S_M E, HELP.'

"Wondering some help? Answering some help? Looking around for some help? Boundary for help?" Tran began haphazardly guessing before the time was up.

The puzzle's answer was then revealed to be, 'Offering some help'.

Seacrest revealed she was competing for one million dollars (YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

Tran understandably became emotional after fumbling the answer, and Seacrest certainly didn't help when he revealed that the envelope she selected from the wheel contained the $1,000,000 prize.

Fret not though because Tran still walked away with $27,300 and a trip to Europe where I'm sure the memories will be way more precious than a $1,000,000. Right?

"I'm proud of Vivan for holding it together," one user commented on a YouTube clip of the episode. "I'd be crying on live TV if I missed out on a million dollars like that."

The last Wheel of Fortune contestant to take home the $1,000,000 prize was in 2014. In October 2021 however, actor Melissa Joan Hart won the coveted prize in an episode of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.