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Wheel of Fortune fans outraged as Ryan Seacrest allows mispronunciation that ‘took away’ a win

ryan seacrest attends the 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards on the red carpet
Ryan is under fire for awarding a win to a contestant who mispronounced a puzzle. Pic credit: ©ImageCollect.com/ AdMedia

Ryan Seacrest is in hot water with Wheel of Fortune viewers.

The show’s new host made a call during a recent episode that had Wheel watchers up in arms.

Kenneth Blout-Hames from Charlotte, North Carolina, was featured during the November 4 episode of Wheel of Fortune.

Kenneth went up against his fellow competitors (Jamella Baker-Bey and Darren Thornton) in a Triple Toss Up round.

The category was “Food & Drink,” and the puzzles got off to a quick start.

Jamella solved the first puzzle, “Vanilla Latte,” when the second puzzle was up for grabs.

Darren rang in to solve the second puzzle, “Mocha Cappucino,” for a winning answer.

Kenneth mispronounced his puzzle, but Ryan Seacrest awarded him the win

For the third puzzle, Kenneth buzzed in to solve, telling host Ryan Seacrest, “Expresso Martini.”

Ryan replied, “That sounds good, too!”

However, as Wheel of Fortune viewers at home noticed, Kenneth pronounced the puzzle incorrectly, saying “expresso” instead of “espresso.”

Wheel of Fortune viewers drag Ryan Seacrest on social media

Outraged fans took to X (formerly Twitter) to sound off, calling out Ryan Seacrest for giving the win to Kenneth.

In response to a post by @VIGOCHAofficial, which read, “Kenneth with the $100 difference for the win,” others chimed in.

wheel of fortune viewers complain about kenneth's answer on X
Wheel of Fortune viewers denounced Ryan for awarding Kenneth the win. Pic credit: @VIGOCHAofficial/X

@TekavecJiim argued that Kenneth “really did not win.”

“Seacrest is an idiot,” he continued. “Kenneth pronounced espresso incorrectly. Took a win away from someone else. He pronounced it Expresso. Instead of Espresso. They should have beeped it wrong. Travesty.”

@1bethemc agreed with @TekavecJiim’s comment, adding, “Agreed!”

“They ruled against the kid who mispronounced ‘Achilles Heel’ and the lady who mispronounced ‘Curio Cabinet’ – with all letters revealed in both cases, I believe – so saying ‘Expresso’ should have been disallowed.”

@1bethemc took their argument further, including a clip of Kenneth’s segment.

“Or maybe listen to it again – it’s clearly EXpresso. So it looks like we DON’T have that in common!!” they added. “Nothing against Kenneth, he was a good player. But the host messed up.”

a wheel of fortune viewer denounced ryan seacrest on X
Another Wheel of Fortune viewer pleaded their case. Pic credit: @1bethemc/X

Kenneth’s win launched him to the Bonus Round

Ryan’s decision earned Kenneth a spot in the Bonus Round rather than his competition, Darren, who was short by a mere $100.

Kenneth’s category was “Phrase” in the Bonus Round, and despite his best efforts and confidence going into the round, he didn’t capitalize on his appearance.

Kenneth lost out on an additional $75,000, and his reaction conveyed that he was shocked and disappointed.

Kenneth still finished with $18,850 in winnings.

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