Why ‘Jeopardy!’ Fans Believe Ken Jennings Secretly (and Repeatedly) Quotes ‘Die Hard’ on the Show

Jeopardy! viewers have had keen eye for details since the long-running game show’s premiere in 1964 — calling out everything from questionable rulings (and answers) to the most minute specifics about every host. This time, fans have an urgent question: Is host Ken Jennings repeatedly quoting Die Hard on the show?

In a Reddit thread posted Friday, April 11, one Redditor started the conversation by calling into question Jennings’ affinity for using a specific phrase.

“‘Double Jeopardy, where the scores can really change!’” the user titled the Reddit thread, noting: “Ken’s said this a couple of times. Is he quoting John McClane in Die Hard?”

John McClane, as Die Hard die-hards know, was the main character of the 1988 blockbuster action film, famously portrayed by Bruce Willis.

In the movie itself, Willis’ character clearly refers to the game show — specifically Jeopardy!’s famous Double Jeopardy round — when he says, “Sorry Hans, wrong guess. Would you like to go for Double Jeopardy where the scores can really change?”

According to another Redditor, “[First Jeopardy! host] Art Fleming used to say that all the time. Die Hard was quoting Art (or possibly Alex [Trebek], not sure if he used to say that back in the day).”

The Redditor continued: “It would go something like this: ‘We’ll be right back with Double Jeopardy!, where the values are doubled and the scores can really change.’”

The host would then go on to lead into a commercial. “‘But first, do you have trouble getting your floors as bright and clean as they can possibly be? Here’s a product that could be the solution you’ve been looking for,’” the user quoted. “‘Please watch, won’t you? Thank you.’”

Now, whether Jennings is going meta and quoting Die Hard — which, of course, is quoting Jeopardy!— or if he’s quoting one of the former hosts of the game show, remains to be seen.

But as one Redditor put it, Jennings is ultimately “just spittin’ facts” by giving the contestants (and viewers) a hopeful message.