‘Jeopardy!’ Star James Holzhauer Mocks ABC for Embarrassing ‘The Chase’ Snafu

Jeopardy! Masters champion James Holzhauer has called out ABC after the network got his name wrong in a promo for The Chase. The clip, which has now been deleted from social media, referred to the quiz show king as “James Hightower.”

Whether it was an unintentional spelling error or an attempt to rebrand the self-confessed super-villain as a kind of long-lost Game of Thrones character, we don’t know.

Holzhauer, however, made sure to grab a screenshot and shared the image with his followers, simply tweeting, “sigh” alongside the picture (see below).

sigh pic.twitter.com/pcZizQaaoo

— James Holzhauer (@James_Holzhauer) July 18, 2023

The embarrassing mistake came in a promo hyping Holzhauer’s return for the season finale of The Chase on Thursday, July 20. In the video, the Jeopardy! legend is seen entering the stage and posing like WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels (Holzhauer is a huge pro-wrestling fan and often makes references to his favorite wrestlers on TV).

“Count your cards and say your prayers. ‘The Highroller’ is our Chaser,” the voice-over said before introducing “James Holzhauer.” However, the on-screen text read: “James Hightower.”

“Hightower, huh? That’s not any better than your classic “High Roller” nickname, I’m afraid,” tweeted one fan.

“This would never happen to Ken Juggalo,” joked another fan, referencing Holzhauer’s former Jeopardy! foe Ken Jennings.

“C’mon, how hard is it to spell Holsshower…Holdstrower…Holesower… Hightower it is!” quipped another viewer.

“You know its a bad day when your aspirational game show villian character is mis-identified,” wrote another.

Holzhauer wasn’t done mocking ABC, though, as he also tweeted about the network’s decision to air encore presentations of the recent Jeopardy! Masters tournament. Viewers will get a second chance to see the show, starting Tuesday, July 25 at 9PM ET.

“ABC’s plan to break the strikes: “get back to work now or we will air James Hightower reruns on loop,” Holzhauer tweeted.

ABC’s plan to break the strikes: “get back to work now or we will air James Hightower reruns on loop” https://t.co/QmNJSq9Q6t

— James Holzhauer (@James_Holzhauer) July 18, 2023

Thursday’s The Chase season finale will mark Holzhauer’s first appearance as a Chaser in the third season. He most recently competed in the special Jeopardy! Masters tournament where he defeated Mattea Roach and Andrew He to become the ultimate winner.

The Chase, Season 3, Finale, Thursday, July 20, 10/9 c, ABC