‘Jeopardy!’ Gets in on ‘Oppenheimer’ Buzz — Fans React to ‘Promo’ for Movie

Meredith Jacobs July 17, 2023, 7:30 pm

Matt Damon and Emily Blunt on 'Jeopardy!' — Jeopardy!, Inc.

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the July 17 episode of Jeopardy!]

Everyone’s talking about Barbenheimer this week, and with the July 17 episode, Jeopardy! got in on (half) the fun. (Who knows what the rest of the week might hold? Both Barbie and Oppenheimer hit theaters on July 21.)

Daniel Moore, a contract compliance analyst, returned with a one day total of $25,000, to face off against retired elementary teacher Jerry Powers and librarian Leann Craumer, and during Double Jeopardy, all three were challenged by a category about J. Robert Oppenheimer. Introducing the category (and reading the clues) were two of Oppenheimer’s stars Emily Bluntand Matt Damon (filmed before the actors strike). (She read three, and he read two.)

In fact, Jerry’s first pick for the round was in that category for $1200 and it was a Video Daily Double. He wagered $1000, and Damon read, “Oppenheimer wasn’t sure why he chose this name for a nuclear test site, but he did recall thinking of John Donne’s poems of death and resurrection, including the sonnet that begins, ‘Batter my heart, three-person’d God.’” Jerry didn’t even have a guess (the answer was Trinity).

'Jeopardy!' Fans React to Contestants Flubbing Easy Questions

After that, it wasn’t until near the end of the round that Daniel returned to the category, but no one got one right in it until the last two, for $800 (Daniel) and $400 (Jerry).

“I cannot escape Oppenheimer, and I also can’t remember the last time a sponsored category had a Daily Double in it,” one fan noted on Reddit. Another wrote, “Matt Damon and Emily Blunt on Jeopardy! Hell yes.”

Scroll down to check out other reactions to the Oppenheimer category.